CELEX: 32019M9334
Language: en
Date: 2019-04-04 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 04/04/2019 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.9334 - GTCR LLC / APAX PARTNERS LLP / DOLPHIN TOPCO, INC) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 04.04.2019
                                                                C(2019) 2753 final
                                                                        PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                To the notifying parties:
Subject:        Case M.9334 – GTCR / APAX PARTNERS / DOLPHIN TOPCO
                Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC)
                                1                                                                             2
                No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area
Dear Sir or Madam,
1.      On 13 March 2019, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which the undertakings
        GTCR LLC (‘GTCR’, USA), and Apax Partners LLP (‘AP’, United-Kingdom), acquire
        within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) and 3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control over
        the whole of the undertaking Dolphin TopCo Inc. (‘Dolphin’, USA), controlled by AP and
        indirect sole shareholder of AssuredPartners Inc., by way of purchase of shares.3
2.      The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
             GTCR is a private equity firm focused on investing in companies in the financial
              services and technology, healthcare, technology, media and telecommunications and
              growth business services industries,
             AP is a private equity firm investing and providing investment advisory services to
              private equity funds in consumer, healthcare, services, telecommunication, and
              technology sectors,
             Dolphin is the indirect sole shareholder of the operating subsidiary AssuredPartners
              Inc.
              AssuredPartners Inc. is a US-based provider of non-life insurance brokerage services,
1       OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the 'Merger Regulation'). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on the
        Functioning of the European Union ('TFEU') has introduced certain changes, such as the replacement of
        'Community' by 'Union' and 'common market' by 'internal market'. The terminology of the TFEU will be used
        throughout this decision.
2       OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 (the 'EEA Agreement').
3       Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 106, 20.03.2019, p. 26.
Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE
Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË
Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.
 ---pagebreak---         specialised in the distribution of non-life insurance and insurance related to employee
        benefits.
3. After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that the
   notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of paragraphs 5(a)
   and 5(b) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain
   concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.4
4. For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European Commission
   has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it compatible with the
   internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is adopted in application of
   Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of the EEA Agreement.
                                                     For the Commission
                                                     (Signed)
                                                     Johannes LAITENBERGER
                                                     Director-General
4  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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