Aon will buy USI Insurance Services for billion, expanding its US middle-market insurance business and reaching more companies and workers.

Updated on: Aug 31, 2026, 19:47:58 IST

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Aon is buying rival USI Insurance Services for $17 billion. Insurance broker Aon announced Monday that it will acquire USI Insurance Services from private equity firm KKR. The deal is worth $17 billion and will bring two major insurance brokers together.

Aon plans to pay for the $17 billion acquisition by taking on new debt. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter, but it still needs approval from regulators, as reported by CNBC.

Aon targets US middle market

The deal is mainly focused on the US middle market. Aon CEO Greg Case said the merger will create what he called the “premier US middle-market platform.” The company wants to use the combined business to offer more insurance and risk-management services to smaller and mid-sized US companies. Case said this during an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

Aon says the combined company could reach a huge group of businesses and workers. Case said the deal will help Aon provide what he described as world-class solutions to an underserved part of the US economy. He said the company will be able to serve about 200,000 middle-market companies and their 48 million employees.

Why does the middle market matter?

Middle-market businesses are companies that are generally larger than small businesses but smaller than the biggest corporations. Aon sees this segment as a major growth opportunity because many of these companies need insurance, employee benefits and risk-management services but may not have the same resources as very large corporations.

Aon expands insurance business

The USI deal continues Aon’s push into the middle market. The acquisition is not Aon’s first major move in this area. Aon bought NFP in 2024, another insurance broker that focuses on the US middle market. The USI purchase would further expand Aon’s presence among these businesses.

USI is already one of the biggest insurance brokers in the US. USI is the 10th-largest insurance broker in the United States, according to the companies’ deal announcement. It has more than $3 billion in annual revenue and employs more than 10,500 people, according to CNBC.

USI will add significant scale to Aon’s middle-market business. By bringing USI into Aon, the company will add thousands of employees, billions of dollars in annual revenue and a large customer base. This could give Aon a much bigger position in the US middle-market insurance business.

USI CEO gets key Aon role

USI CEO Mike Sicard will take a senior role at Aon. After the acquisition closes, Mike Sicard, USI’s current CEO, will become Aon’s president and global CEO of middle market. This means he will have a major role in running Aon’s expanded middle-market business.

Sicard said joining Aon would be an “energizing next chapter” for USI. He said the company would have an opportunity to build on its growth as part of Aon’s broader platform. Sicard said this in the deal announcement, according to CNBC.

Sicard also said Aon and USI share a one-firm culture and a strong focus on working together. He said this could help the combined company bring more of its capabilities to clients. Sicard said in the press release.

KKR partner Chris Harrington said Aon is an ideal partner to support USI’s next stage of growth. KKR currently owns USI and will sell the insurance broker to Aon as part of the $17 billion transaction, according to CNBC.

Aon shares fall after deal

Aon shares slipped about 1% in premarket trading Monday after investors reacted to the deal. The initial decline suggests some investors may be watching the size of the acquisition and the new debt Aon will take on to fund it. Despite the early drop in the stock, Case said the opportunity to serve the middle market at a much larger scale could create significant value for Aon shareholders.

Case said the potential value from expanding Aon’s middle-market business could be “maybe the greatest” opportunity he has seen during his 20 years as CEO. Case made the comments on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

What the deal means for US middle-market businesses:

The acquisition could give Aon a much larger platform to offer insurance, employee benefits and risk-management services to US middle-market companies. Aon is betting that its larger scale, combined with USI’s existing business, will help it compete more strongly for this customer group.

Aon and USI still need to receive regulatory approvals before the transaction can close. The companies expect the deal to be completed in the fourth quarter, assuming those approvals are received.

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