Aon to acquire USI for $17 billion
Aon has agreed to acquire USI Insurance Services from KKR and other shareholders for $17 billion, extending its push into the U.S. middle market after its 2024 acquisition of NFP.
USI, the tenth-largest U.S. insurance broker, generates approximately $3 billion in annual revenue and employs more than 10,500 people across nearly 200 offices. Its offerings span commercial P&C, employee benefits, personal risk and retirement solutions.
According to Aon, the deal will substantially expand its presence in the more than $40 billion U.S. middle-market segment, which represents over one-third of U.S. commercial P&C direct written premium. The combination also gives Aon broader access to the E&S market through USI’s emerging wholesale capabilities, including MGA, MGU and wholesale distribution.
The company expects the combined middle-market platform to produce roughly $395 million of annual run-rate adjusted EBITDA impact from identified revenue and cost synergies. Aon expects the acquisition to become accretive to adjusted EPS in 2028.
The $16.7 billion net purchase price values USI at about 14.5x synergized trailing 12-month adjusted EBITDA. Aon plans to finance the transaction with new debt and said it will pause near-term share repurchases while prioritizing deleveraging.
The transaction, approved by both companies’ boards, is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. Aon and USI will continue to operate independently until closing.
“In a time of rising complexity and volatility, creating better outcomes for clients across their risk and people challenges requires a combination of capabilities and expertise supported by proprietary data, analytics and technology. Through the successful execution of our 3×3 Plan to accelerate our Aon United strategy, we have significantly strengthened our firm to build the industry’s most differentiated model: what we call our context advantage. Combining with USI will establish the premier U.S. middle-market platform, deepen our context advantage and position Aon to accelerate organic growth. Building on the success of our acquisition of NFP, USI will substantially enhance our middle-market footprint and expand access for our firm in the E&S segment to deliver content, capabilities and expertise to a broader client base, while enabling client leaders to expand relationships and win new business. Our combined data platform will generate richer insight, advance the development of innovative, AI-driven solutions and expand the universe of insurable risk, while further reinforcing the context advantage that differentiates Aon. For nearly two decades, Mike Sicard has built and led a high-performing and integrated team, and I am excited about the opportunities we will create together for our clients, colleagues and shareholders.” – Greg Case, President and CEO of Aon.
“Joining Aon represents a truly energizing next chapter for our firm and an opportunity to accelerate our momentum as part of the Aon United platform,” said Sicard. “Our firms share strong, one-firm cultures with a deep commitment to working together to bring the best of our capabilities to clients. I look forward to leading Aon’s middle-market platform and uniting the strengths of USI, NFP and Aon to deliver a new standard of content, capabilities and service to our clients.” – USI Chairman and CEO Mike Sicard.
