NEW YORK – Confie Seguros, a rapidly growing provider of auto insurance with an emphasis on serving Hispanic consumers, today announced that it has acquired auto insurance brokerage West Coast Auto Insurance Services. The acquisition broadens Confie Seguros’ presence throughout California and places it on track to become the leading national insurance distribution company primarily focused on the needs of Hispanic consumers.

The Confie Seguros management team has developed a growth strategy to build a company that caters to the underserved Hispanic market. Funding for future acquisitions will be provided by commitments from private equity firm Genstar Capital, and the company management team, for $75 million, as well as a bank facility with expected capacity in excess of $200 million. With nearly $300 million of capital commitments, Confie Seguros expects to build a national distribution company focusing on eight to 10 of the most densely populated Hispanic markets, including California, Arizona, Florida, Texas, Illinois, and Nevada. With the acquisition of West Coast, Confie Seguros now has an annual run-rate of $75 million in revenues, well over 300,000 customers, $250 million in annual written premiums, and over 80 retail brokerage stores throughout California.

“West Coast is a rapidly growing company that meets our strategic objective of identifying companies that will help us establish the country’s leading insurance brokerage catering primarily to Hispanic consumers,” said John Addeo, CEO of Confie Seguros. “As we continue broadening our footprint by targeting strategic acquisitions and opening new stores in existing markets, our goal is to continue providing an unmatched level of customer service and product offerings for our customers.”

John Klaeb, CEO of Confie Seguros California, said, “We are very excited about acquiring and integrating West Coast into our organization to expand our reach into the California auto insurance market. We have invested significantly in training our people and improving our retail locations to meet the Hispanic consumers’ desire for face-to-face purchasing. Our relationship with Confie Seguros will allow us to continue providing that superior level of service.” Confie Seguros California, led by COO Joe Waked, plans to complete the integration of West Coast by the end of 2008.

Mordy Rothberg, President of Confie Seguros, said, “We expect to integrate West Coast into our operations quickly so we can leverage our existing infrastructure to introduce complementary insurance products – such as life and homeowner’s insurance – to serve all of our consumers’ needs.”

Earlier this year, Confie Seguros partnered with Westline (now Confie Seguros California), one the largest distributors of non-standard auto insurance products throughout California. Confie Seguros California offers its products through three brokerage operations: South Coast Auto Insurance, Solo Insurance, and Freeway Insurance.

About Confie Seguros

Confie Seguros (www.confieseguros.com) is a portfolio company of private equity firm Genstar Capital that is consolidating profitable non-standard auto insurance brokerages to become the first national insurance distribution company dedicated primarily to the Hispanic consumer. During the next five years, Confie Seguros plans to establish through platform and tuck-in acquisitions a meaningful presence in eight to 10 of the most densely populated Hispanic markets in the U.S., and become the “Trusted Advisor” to the Hispanic consumer looking to purchase auto insurance and other financial products. CEO John Addeo previously led two successful consolidations of middle-market property and casualty brokerages.

About Genstar Capital, LLC

Genstar Capital (www.gencap.com) is a leading private equity firm that for 20 years has been actively investing in high quality middle-market companies and building value in those businesses by utilizing the expertise of its operating partners. Based in San Francisco, Genstar works in partnership with its management teams and its network of operating partners and strategic advisors to transform its portfolio companies into industry-leading businesses. Genstar has more than $3 billion of committed capital under management and targets investments focused on selected sectors within the life science, healthcare services, industrial technology, software, and business services industries.

Web site: http://www.confieseguros.com/

http://www.gencap.com/

Posted: 09|25|08 at 10:22 am. Filed under: Finance News.