Argo Group Purchases Massamont Insurance Agency

Argo Group International Holdings Ltd., an international underwriter of specialty insurance and reinsurance products in niche areas of the property and casualty market, announced that its Trident Insurance Services unit has acquired Massamont Insurance Agency Inc. This move immediately expands Argonaut's public entity footprint into New England, a market previously underserved by Trident, reportedly positioning the company well ahead of competitors. Hilbert "Van" Schenck II, CPCU, will assume the role of president of Trident while continuing his leadership of Massamont. The transaction is the evolution of a managing general agency (MGA) partnership established last year. The new combined organization will do business under the Trident and Massamont names and will have operations in San Antonio, Boston, Greenfield (MA) and Chicago that will maximize its capacity to write public entity risks across the country. Massamont's 20-year track record in the public entity business reportedly bolsters Trident's already robust market presence. The Massamont book will also add to Argo Group's Select Markets product portfolio with additional automobile specialty programs. The combination reportedly nearly doubles the employee count to 162 and will boost gross written premium by 65 percent. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.