A new company formed by the purchase and combination of two Mercer administration units and with support from Bain Capital's insurance investing division, will provide specialist benefits and retirement administration services in the U.S. and U.K.
Aptia was formed by the purchase of the Mercer's U.S. health and benefits administration and U.K. retirement administration businesses, a news release said. The new company, which is supported by Bain Capital Insurance, will provide service, support and benefits plan management to more than 5 million people across more than 1,100 clients, Aptia said in the news release.
The firm will manage a U.S. employee benefits administration platform for employees and retirees, and will also provide defined benefit administration in the U.K.
Bala Viswanathan, chief operating officer of Mercer, was named CEO of Aptia. Mr. Viswanathan was CEO of insurance and benefits firm Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group until it was acquired by Mercer in 2019. Dominic Burke, vice chairman of Mercer parent company Marsh McLennan, was named chairman of Aptia. He was group CEO of JLT from 2005 to 2019.
“Aptia will focus exclusively on employee benefits administration and specialist pension administration delivered by experts and enabled by technology,” Mr. Viswanathan said in the release. “In partnership with Bain Capital, we will seek to create a genuinely differentiated and highly responsive client experience that will resonate strongly in the marketplace.”
"Digital enablement is underpenetrated in these sectors. We see a clear opportunity to empower our people by continuously investing in the leading technologies they need to efficiently deliver specialized client solutions. We will also prioritize our people from day one by establishing a supportive learning culture that offers the foundation for growth and development both in and outside of the workplace," Mr. Burke added.
Matt Cannan, a partner at Bain Capital Insurance, added in the same release that the firm believes "that investing in people, technology, and operations can build on the existing foundations to grow Aptia into a nimble, innovative, and reliable platform delivering high-quality servicing and fulfillment capability to clients at scale. Bala and Dominic have strong track records of creating successful, client-centric cultures. We are excited to partner with a highly talented group of people under their leadership and look forward to building a differentiated international administration business."
The transaction, which is subject to approvals and other closing conditions, is expected to be completed late this year. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Kirkland & Ellis, Deloitte and EY-Parthenon advised Bain Capital Insurance on the deal. Hogan Lovells advised Marsh McLennan.
Bain Capital Insurance is Bain Capital's dedicated insurance investing business. Bain Capital has more than $165 billion in assets under management.
A Mercer statement provided by a spokesman said: "While we can confirm the details of the transaction outlined in the buyer Aptia's press release are correct, we do not comment on deals in progress."
Details of Bain's backing for Aptia were not disclosed, a spokeswoman for Bain Capital said.
