Radius acquires commercial insurance broker The Burley Group
Radius Payment Solutions, the group behind the telematics and fuel card brands Kinesis and UK Fuels, has acquired The Burley Group, for an undisclosed sum.
Established in the 1950s, The Burley Group is an award-winning provider of fleet, transportation and construction insurance and is one of South Yorkshire’s largest independent insurance brokers.
Last year the Sheffield-based company won Insurance Times Silver Award for Commercial Lines Broker of the Year and in 2014 won the Insurance Times Award for Excellence in Motor Broking.
In joining Crewe-based Radius, Burley see significant opportunities for growth of its fleet insurance business, not only through access to 1.2 million UK Fuel card holders, but also in the development of telematics-linked products, a key growth area for insurers.
Earlier this year Radius was recognised as one of the UK’s largest private companies and ranked 19th in the 2019 Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 100 list having seen turnover grow to £2.5bn in 2019.
More than 600 staff work at its Crewe headquarters.
The Burley Group acquisition is part of a diversification strategy by Radius that was first established by owner Bill Holmes as a fuel card company in 1990 and is now one of the world’s leading suppliers of fleet management solutions to a wide range of businesses.
Mr Holmes said: “This move is a great move for Radius as it significantly strengthens our insurance division with a company that has a long history of providing great service to its customers.
“We plan to both significantly expand the sales operation as well as create new products driven by data from our telematics platform. We look forward to working with the MD Matt Mawson and his experienced team over the months ahead as we start to develop and execute our plans.”
Mr Mawson said: “Joining the Radius group of companies represents a fantastic opportunity for the business and our staff. Aligned, as we are, to the transport sector, we sit perfectly with Radius’ fuel card and telematics businesses, providing a great opportunity to maximise growth through its divisions.
“We’re particularly excited about the prospect of connecting with its telematics products, and the possibilities this will bring, in addition to the investment that will be made allowing us to expand our footprint across the UK. It’s a great move and a really exciting time for Burley.”
The 1.2 million fuel cards that Radius provides to fleet operators are used to buy more than three billion litres of diesel a year and its telematics solution is currently installed in more than 150,000 vehicles across the globe.
Now a key global player providing an array of products and services to more than 300,000 customers, the group employs in excess of 1,400 and recently opened a state-of-the-art 66,000 sq ft campus headquarters in Crewe.
Radius was advised by BDO (Tom Barford – FDD and Tax) and Gowling WLG (Andrew Lawton-Smith – Legal).
Burley was advised by Christian Mayo, Stewart Cape and Ed Crocker of KPMG, while Max Kennedy of Foys solicitors acted for the shareholders on the legal aspects of the sale.
Stewart Cape, who leads KPMG’s corporate finance focus on financial services in the North, said: “Amongst the wave of consolidation in the insurance sector this is a unique transaction, given Radius is a provider of payment and telematics solutions.
“The acquisition provides Radius with the right partner to develop their insurance offering and provides Burley with access to Radius’ significant customer base and resources.”
