Mubadala and co-investors to buy out fifth-largest US insurer

Mubadala and co-investors are buying the remaining stake of Truist Financial Corporation in its insurance unit. Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi’s sovereign investment arm Mubadala Investment Company is teaming up with private equity firm Stone Point Capital and other investors to fully buy out US insurance broker Truist Insurance Holdings.

Mubadala and its co-investors in the deal, including Clayton Dubilier & Ross (CD&R), are buying the remaining 80 per cent stake held by US commercial and investment bank Truist Financial Corporation in its insurance unit, the Abu Dhabi fund said on Thursday.

In March last year, Mubadala and its co-investors announced the purchase of a 20 per cent stake in Truist Insurance, in a deal valued at $1.95 billion.

The all-cash transaction places Truist Insurance, the fifth-largest insurer in the US, at an implied enterprise value of $15.5 billion.

The parties expect to complete the transaction during the second quarter of 2024, subject to regulatory approvals.

Truist’s board has unanimously approved the agreement, Mubadala said.

“We are tremendously excited to have the opportunity to make an additional investment in Truist Insurance Holdings,” said Luca Molinari, head of Asia and Financial Services at Mubadala.

“It is a fantastic business led by a top management team, and together with our partners at Stone Point Capital and CD&R we are looking forward to further enabling its growth.”

Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Truist Insurance operates more than 200 offices through its portfolio of wholesale, retail, and insurance services businesses.

The investment shows “the significant value of Truist Insurance Holdings and strategically positions it, and Truist, for long-term success”, Truist chairman and chief executive Bill Rogers said in March last year.

Mubadala, which is at the centre of the UAE’s efforts to diversify its economy, manages more than $284 billion in assets globally.

Its interests span six continents and in recent years it has stepped up its investment in health care, technology, mobility, clean energy and life sciences as it grows its portfolio, with a particular focus on investments in the US and fast-growing Asian markets.

Last year, Mubadala revealed new investment deals in India as part of its expansion in the world’s most populous country.

Earlier this month, Mubadala said it was investing in India’s Manipal Health Enterprises as part of its continued expansion in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Manipal, founded by Ranjan Pai in 1991, operates more than 30 hospitals across India, serving about six million patients per year, Mubadala said at the time.

In April last year, Mubadala and the British Columbia Investment Management Corporation, a Canadian pension fund, became anchor investors in Cube Highways Trust, an infrastructure investment trust in India.

In 2023, Mubadala was ranked by the Global SWF report as one of the top 10 most-active deal makers among global sovereign wealth funds – along with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and ADQ.