Cullum in for the long haul

It seems a long time ago since Candover and Towergate discussed a multi-billion pound valuation and taking Towergate public with Patrick Snowball - chairman of Towergate Financial Services - at the helm. Candover is now in trouble and Towergate has not made any significant acquisitions since the Broker Network at the end of 2007. As a sign of the times, when renegotiating its debt terms, Towergate's executive chairman Peter Cullum said that his banking syndicate had more questions about Towergate than ever, even from the small players that normally trust the lead banks.

Acquisitions of any note have slowed to a trickle, although never underestimate the appetite of banks to support brokers. For example, LFC Insurance has secured funding through Macquarie bank to continue its mini-acquisition spree in Essex and the South-east.

Cullum, who is not going anywhere soon, said that there are still many brokers in their late fifties who are seeking a rewarding exit. Prices dropping means that acquirers are still set to be hungry for purchases; 50% of respondents in our Sentiment Survey (pp.38-44) think that there will be either more or the same amount of acquisition activity in 2009 as last year. However, Bill Cooper, managing director for financial institutions at LloydsTSB, said on the record in sister title Post that the consolidators will need to pursue new growth strategies - note Cullum's investment in commercial online insurance - as insurers claw back commission. Cooper also cited the long-mooted possibility of the consolidation of the consolidators; don't rule out Cullum playing an active role here too.

NIG wakes up

After a quiet period and a series of senior management changes, NIG has announced the closure of branches in Cardiff, Chelmsford, Exeter, Leicester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Reading and Redhill. A NIG spokesman said: "The rationale behind the restructure is to make NIG easier to deal with." We assume, then, that this has nothing to do with NIG's underwriting loss of £73m in 2007.