KINGSTON, Jamaica – First Global Insurance Brokers Limited (FGIB), a wholly owned subsidiary of GraceKennedy Limited, has purchased the insurance brokerage portfolio of United Reliance International Limited (URI), the largest insurance brokerage in the Turks and Caicos Islands. The acquisition is effective on October 1, 2008.
URI has been operating in the Turks and Caicos Islands since 1988, writing property and casualty and medical insurance business. It presently acts as broker for Jamaica International Insurance Company Limited of Jamaica, and Guardian General Insurance Limited (formerly NEMWIL) of Trinidad & Tobago. Both of these companies will now be represented by FGIB.
Acting Chief Executive Officer of GK Investments Joseph Taffe pointed out that the acquisition was in keeping with GraceKennedy’s expansion strategy within the English-speaking Caribbean. “This acquisition within the Turks and Caicos insurance industry gives GraceKennedy increased access to a high-growth economy, which augurs well for the growth potential going forward,” said Mr. Taffe.
The former President of URI Neville Bolton will be joining FGIB as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Mitchell, formerly a senior executive of Jamaica International Insurance Company Limited of Jamaica, another member of the GraceKennedy Group, will be transferred to FGIB as its Managing Director.
GraceKennedy Ltd. is one of the largest and most dynamic corporate entities in the Caribbean. With its headquarters in Jamaica, the GraceKennedy Group comprises a varied network of some 60 subsidiaries and associated companies located across the Caribbean, North and Central America, Canada and the United Kingdom. Its operations span the food manufacturing and distribution, financial, insurance, remittance, hardware and retailing industries.
