Willis launches Merger Protect for M&A regulatory costs

Willis, a WTW business, has introduced Merger Protect, an insurance solution aimed at covering costs tied to U.S. antitrust reviews in mergers and acquisitions.

The product reimburses defined expenses when a Hart-Scott-Rodino Second Request is issued by the Federal Trade Commission or the Department of Justice, and can extend to related enforcement actions. It targets buyers, sellers, and advisors dealing with the operational and financial burden of regulatory scrutiny.

Second Requests often trigger extensive data collection, document production, and analysis, driving up costs across legal, economic, and e-discovery workstreams. Merger Protect converts those variable expenses into a predefined insurance cost, helping deal parties manage uncertainty and preserve deal economics.

The policy is structured early in a reportable transaction and activates if a Second Request is issued, reimbursing covered response costs subject to retentions and limits. Coverage can include legal fees, consultants, economists, data collection and hosting, document review, and witness preparation.

Willis said the solution is tailored per transaction, factoring in deal size, sector, and regulatory exposure, with underwriting informed by historical Second Request activity and enforcement trends.

“A Second Request doesn’t mean a deal is broken but it does create financial uncertainty that comes with a regulatory deep dive. Merger Protect gives deal parties something they haven’t had before: a way to protect against the cost volatility of regulatory review without compromising their ability to defend the transaction. That is a meaningful addition to how sponsors and their advisors think about risk management in M&A.” – Aartie Manansingh, Head of Alternative Asset Insurance Solutions.