Hub International acquires two Canadian benefits firms

Hub International Ltd. is acquiring Ontario-based Benefit Broker Services Inc.

Benefit Broker Services, which is located in Wallaceburg, Ont., is a provider of services related to employee benefits and pension plans. The terms of the acquisition weren’t disclosed.

Scott Ewing, the firm’s president, and Stacey Ewing, its co-founder and owner, will join Hub Ontario, reporting to Rob Tamblyn, president of employee benefits for Hub Ontario’s southwest region.

Read: Hub International acquires two more Canadian benefits, pension companies

Hub is also acquiring Saskatchewan-based commercial insurance and employee benefits broker Blackstone Insurance, Benefits & Bonding Inc. Troy Shanks, vice-president of the company’s benefits division, and Tim Shanks, senior vice-president of its commercial division will join Hub Manitoba.

The deals are the latest in a line of acquisitions made by Hub in recent months, including Coquitlam, B.C.-based Optimum Group Benefits and Insurance Services Ltd. and Leamington, Ont.-based Hammond Insurance Agency Inc. in July.

Hub is planning to grow its employee benefits division to $100 million by 2021 through further acquisition and organic growth.

Read: Hub International acquires Quebec benefits brokerage

“We decided a few years ago that one of the key strategic initiatives for the entire company was to build a market-leading employee benefits and pension organization in Canada to complement the property-casualty strength that we have across Canada,” Mike Barone, president of employee benefits at Hub, told Benefits Canada in July 2018.