Energetic, passionate, nimble, cohesive, complementary, collaborative, disruptive. Those are just some of the words Rod Fox, founder and executive chairman of TigerRisk Partners, uses to describe what his firm has in common with Howden, its soon-to-be long-term partner since the firms signed a $1.6 billion deal in June.

Commonality is good in any relationship. Fox is excited. But he appreciates there are differences—and that is what makes it even more interesting. One word that does not translate is sport. Fox and Howden CEO David Howden both like sport in general—it’s an effective mechanism to unite people in a way that little else does. Another example of a perfect cultural fit between firms and big personalities. Actually, not in this case. Fox likes American football; Howden likes horses and rugby.

But beyond linguistics and marketing speak, there are tangible similarities and differences to consider in a merger such as this. An ideal is little crossover in terms of clients and business activities but a similar culture. That is what Fox sees—and that is why he is confident that Howden Tiger, of which he will be executive chairman, as the new reinsurance broker will be known, has the potential to disrupt the reinsurance brokerage world for good.

“The cultural fit is outstanding, but the firms are very complementary in their offering,” Fox says. “The values of the two firms, the work ethic, the style of how we do things really works. One senior insurance executive said to me recently: ‘You guys bring energy to the market’. The market needs that energy, that innovation.

“When you bring the Howden and the Tiger people together, you can feel the energy. Particularly at this moment for the marketplace, that energy is going to be fantastic.

“Another client complemented us on how passionate our people are. I see that same passion with the Howden people. That stems from the private ownership we both have. It allows us to be nimble and encourages teamwork and cohesion in the team.

“Neither company works in silos, and we love that. It has shone through in the interactions between people: high energy and very collaborative.”

Complementary footprints

Beyond the energy and the culture, the respective footprints of the businesses complement each other, Fox says. Howden had a reinsurance business but much it was smaller than TigerRisk and with a small footprint in North America. It was instead attached to a much larger retail and wholesale operation with a global footprint and a managing general agent (MGA).

“Specifically in the reinsurance segment, Howden had three things we did not: an MGA practice that they had built in Dallas, an international facultative capability, and a London Market specialty reinsurance business. We had none of those things but would have wanted to build them eventually,” Fox says.

“We have been described as a market disruptor. It’s a very powerful combination. The deal gives us greater scale globally, which will be helpful for clients. It gives us more capabilities, it gives us a broader breadth incorporating the retail, the wholesale, the MGA capability.

“All that directly applies to North American clients. Having more scale and a wider offering will be beneficial to everyone.”