Axa UK has brought in Fenchurch Advisory Partners to act as advisor on the possible £100 million sale of its Bluefin Advisory Services business.
The advisors are to ascertain whether it would be more beneficial for the business, which is focused on employee benefits, to be developed in the hands of its current owners or under new ownership.
It is understood that a sale would lead to Axa taking the rest of the Bluefin insurance broking in-house.
Interested parties that have already stepped forward are understood to be private equity and trade buyers including JLT, Marsh and Aon. There is also the possibility of a private equity-backed management buy-out led by Nick Burns, the boss of Bluefin Advisory.
Bluefin Advisory Services specialises in financial advisory and insurance broking services and operates from 60 offices in the UK with a total of 2,000 employees.
The sale will be part of France-based Axa’s plans for its UK operations, and follows a £2.75 billion sale of parts of its UK life business to Resolution in June last year.
General insurance broker Bluefin Insurance Group is part of Axa’s commercial lines operation, and is a separate business and so won’t be subject to the review.
