Baldwin to Acquire CAC Group in $1.03B Deal to Expand Specialty Brokerage

Baldwin Insurance Group announced its agreement to acquire the specialty and middle-market brokerage CAC Group in a transaction valued at $1.03 billion, aiming to establish one of the largest independent insurance advisory and distribution platforms in the U.S. CAC, based in Denver, ranks as the 35th-largest U.S. brokerage with $282.4 million in 2024 brokerage revenue, and will add approximately 650 employees to Baldwin's nearly 4,350 workforce, totaling around 5,000 employees. The combined firm is projected to exceed $2 billion in gross revenue and $470 million in adjusted EBITDA by 2026. The purchase consideration includes $438 million in cash, 23.2 million shares of Baldwin common stock valued at $589 million, a performance-based earnout up to $250 million, and a $70 million deferred payment. The valuation implies a multiple of 7.9 times 2025 expected pro forma adjusted EBITDA, incorporating anticipated synergies. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter. Integrating CAC enhances Baldwin's specialty insurance capabilities across sectors such as natural resources, private equity, real estate, senior living, education, construction, financial lines, transactional liability, cyber, and surety. CAC's data and analytics platform will bolster Baldwin's middle-market distribution, leveraging Baldwin's reinsurance, managing general agency (MGA) operations, and proprietary technology. Baldwin CEO Trevor Baldwin highlighted the cultural and operational complementarity between the firms, noting this acquisition fits Baldwin's strategic objective to ascend into the top 10 U.S. broker rankings by 2029. CAC Executive Chairman Paul Sparks will join Baldwin's board, strengthening governance oversight. This acquisition follows a period of scaled-back mergers and acquisitions activity by Baldwin after acquiring Westwood Insurance Agency in 2022. It also occurs amid significant consolidation in the brokerage industry, with recent multi-billion-dollar deals by Arthur J. Gallagher, Brown & Brown, Aon, and Marsh, underscoring ongoing competitive pressures and growth strategies within the U.S. insurance brokerage market.