TAG Financial Advises XPT Group on Equity Investment by BP Marsh

BP Marsh & Partners (“BPM”), a London based and listed private equity investor specializing in financial services businesses, made an equity investment in XPT Group, LLC (“XPT”).  XPT is a New York-based specialty insurance distribution company led by an insurance industry veteran management team. 

The XPT team is led by former Marsh , Advisen and Swett & Crawford executive Thomas Ruggieri and Mark Smith, onetime president and CEO of Stewart Smith, the US wholesaler sold by Willis to Amwins in 2005. The XPT start-up team also includes Jeff Heath, the founder of the Heath Group which he sold to Hallmark Financial Services in 2008, and Mason Power, who was most recently COO and CMO at Swett & Crawford working with then CEO Ruggieri. He also worked at Advisen, the information and analysis firm founded by Ruggieri, who left Swett & Crawford after its acquisition by BB&T last year.

The business is set to come to the market with both an acquisition and organic growth strategy at a time of significant consolidation opportunities in the small-to-medium-sized wholesale and managing general agency (MGA) space.

TAG Financial Institutions Group, LLC (“TFIG”) advised on the organization of XPT and facilitated the transaction.