European Insurance M&A Barometer: Q1 2022 Update

Executive Summary

The first quarter of 2022 saw a relative slowdown in European insurance M&A deal volumes relative to Q1 2021, but a total deal count notably above Q1 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic started, indicating the backlog of transactions that had built up due to lockdowns and general economic uncertainty.

Notably, announcement volumes trended higher than in Q4 2021 despite high valuation multiples being seen, indicating the weight of appetite and capital for M&A activity across the European insurance market. The majority of deals were small company acquisitions as part of consolidation roll-up strategies, but Europe did see some notable strategic M&A transactions.

The U.K. and Ireland continued to lead the market for deals across Europe, with the DACH region following. Iberia, Italy and the Nordics saw a spike in M&A activity, generally fuelled by broker consolidation. Moving forward, rising interest rates could present a headwind to the buyouts market, with debt financing becoming more expensive.

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