Hyperion acquires Spanish broker

1 August 2006: Hyperion, one of the UK’s fastest growing independent insurance groups, today announced its first acquisition since its recent successful equity placing that raised £5.1 million of new capital to fund its ongoing growth plans.

On behalf of its broking division, Howden, the Group has acquired Coselusan Correduria de Seguros SL (“Coselusan”), a well-established insurance broker based in Barcelona. Coselusan will complement Howden’s existing Spanish operation based in Madrid, and further consolidates the Group’s presence in Spain. The Coselusan management team will be remaining with the business.

Commenting on this latest acquisition, Hyperion’s Chief Executive David Howden said: “Spain’s economic growth has outpaced the European average for nearly ten years. Recent studies show that the Spanish commercial liability market is one of the least developed in the EU, and we see tremendous opportunities for companies such as ours with the expertise and agility to move quickly to respond to this market’s ever changing needs.”

Tim Coles, CEO of Howden adds: “Coselusan has developed a strong presence in the Spanish insurance market for professional liability insurance for audit and accounting firms. We have ambitious plans for our retail broking business in Spain, which will see us undertaking further investment and recruitment. The acquisition of Coselusan strengthens our footprint in Spain and represents the first step in what will be a significant development for our business in this region.”

Luis Sanchez, founder of Coselusan, concludes: "Howden is an international business with strong market relationships. There is a natural synergy between our business focus and service ethics as we are both specialists in liability insurance and place great emphasis on finding solutions to our clients' insurance needs. Becoming part of the Howden group represents a natural step forward to allow our business to grow and our people to flourish."

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