Confie Seguros Purchases West Coast Auto

Confie Seguros, a provider of auto insurance with an emphasis on serving Hispanic consumers, has acquired auto insurance brokerage West Coast Auto Insurance Services. The acquisition broadens Confie Seguros' presence throughout California and places it on track to become the leading national insurance distribution company primarily focused on the needs of Hispanic consumers.

The Confie Seguros management team has developed a growth strategy to build a company that caters to the Hispanic market. Funding for future acquisitions will be provided by commitments from private equity firm Genstar Capital, and the company management team, for $75 million, as well as a bank facility with expected capacity in excess of $200 million.

With nearly $300 million of capital commitments, Confie Seguros expects to build a national distribution company focusing on eight to 10 of the most densely populated Hispanic markets, including California, Arizona, Florida, Texas, Illinois, and Nevada. With the acquisition of West Coast, Confie Seguros now has an annual run-rate of $75 million in revenues, well over 300,000 customers, $250 million in annual written premiums, and over 80 retail brokerage stores throughout California.

Confie Seguros California, led by COO Joe Waked, plans to complete the integration of West Coast by the end of 2008.

Earlier this year, Confie Seguros partnered with Westline (now Confie Seguros California), one the largest distributors of non-standard auto insurance products throughout California. Confie Seguros California offers its products through three brokerage operations: South Coast Auto Insurance, Solo Insurance, and Freeway Insurance.