Business Moves

Fairfax/Odyssey Re

Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. will sell $1 billion in stock to fund the purchase of the shares of Odyssey Re Holdings Corp. that it does not already own. Fairfax reduced its stake in the reinsurer a few years ago to raise money. The Toronto-based already owns about 73 percent of Connecticut-based Odyssey Re. It plans to buy the remaining shares for $60 each, a premium of about 20 percent over the price at the time of the announcement.

Fairfax, a financial services holding company with subsidiaries in property and casualty insurance, reinsurance and investment management, said there would be no changes in Odyssey Re’s strategic or operating philosophy under the deal,” according to a report from Reuters.

AmWINS/Managing Agency

Charlotte, North Carolina-based national wholesale insurance broker AmWINS Group, Inc. has acquired The Managing Agency Group- Employee Benefits, a division of insurance broker Willis HRH. MAG-EB is a wholesale broker of employee benefit plans for small and mid-sized employer groups of 2 to 300 employees.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

M. Steven DeCarlo, CEO of AmWINS Group, said MAG-EB’s niche expertise and target client group complement his firm’s existing capabilities.

Founded in 1976, MAG-EB distributes and administers group dental, vision, life, and disability plans for employer groups and their employees. In addition, MAG-EB serves as a brokerage general agency of employee benefit plans for over 30 major carriers.

AmWINS operates through more than 45 offices across the U.S. and handles premium placements in excess of $3.4 billion annually.

Markel International/Elliot

Markel International, the specialty property and casualty insurer, has agreed to acquire Elliott Special Risks (ESR), a managing general agent in Canada. The acquisition is expected to close on Oct. 1 and values ESR at CDN $75 million. In 2008 ESR reported gross premium income of CDN $113 million. ESR is being sold by Newport Partners Income Fund.

ESR will continue to trade under its own name as a wholly-owned Markel subsidiary.

ESR employs 80 staff in Toronto and Montreal. It provides products such as Environmental Impairment, Exporters Liability, Errors and Omissions, Directors and Officers, Non-standard Property and Umbrella and Excess Liability risks. Historically ESR has utilized a insurance companies and Lloyd’s syndicates, including Markel International.