Active Assurances Groupe, a fast-growing player in the online distribution of car and health insurance

Founded in 2010 by Didier Naccache, Thomas Riottot and Denis Salmoiraghi, Active Assurances has shown uninterrupted growth since its launch. The company has quickly established itself as the leading independent online car insurance broker.

In 2017, the Group used its know-how to launch its wholesale business by partnering with Hervé Massié and David Barbara. After three years of existence, Wazari, a subsidiary of Active Assurances Groupe, today distributes its broad range of car, health, and protection products via a network of 3,000 partner brokers.

At the beginning of 2019, AFI Assurances, a pioneer in distance selling of health insurance contracts since 2005, and its founder Frédéric Bacmann, joined the Group. The firm’s expertise in the design, management and online distribution of health insurance policies has made it one of the leading players in France and has contributed to the Group’s strong growth.

With management centers in France and Madagascar, Active Assurances Groupe has more than 160,000 customers and doubled its turnover in the current financial year.

Consolidation of the marketplace model in financial services

Groupe Meilleurtaux is already present in car and health insurance through MeilleureAssurance, the leading health insurance comparator on the French market.

The acquisition of Active Assurances Groupe will enable Meilleurtaux to support its customers throughout the entire value chain, from comparison to the sale and management of car and health insurance policies. The transaction is expected to close over the coming weeks.

Groupe Meilleurtaux is also active in wholesale brokerage through its subsidiary Assuréa, which specializes in loan insurance. Combined with Wazari, it will provide Meilleurtaux’s brokerage partners with a complete range of loan, health, protection and car insurance products.

Guillaume Autier, Executive Chairman of Groupe Meilleurtaux, said: “The acquisition of Active Assurances Groupe is an important step in the development of Groupe Meilleurtaux, giving it a complete range of services in car and health insurance. During discussions with the management of Active Assurances Groupe, we identified a strong alignment of views and numerous synergy projects, which make this transaction so attractive. The efficiency of the Active Assurances model in France and Madagascar will be a real asset for Meilleurtaux.”

Thomas Riottot, Chairman and co-founder of Active Assurances, said: “What attracted us the most in Groupe Meilleurtaux was its strong online presence, its brand awareness and its know-how in online acquisition and digital value creation paths. After three years of structuring our operations and strong growth in all our businesses alongside Activa Capital, joining Meilleurtaux is a new development opportunity for Active Assurances.”

Christian Lucas, Co-Head of Silver Lake EMEA, majority shareholder of Groupe Meilleurtaux, said: “We are pleased to continue to invest in Meilleurtaux to support the Group’s growth. Since our acquisition of Meilleurtaux, we have seized all market opportunities, first by acquiring ‘MesPlacements’ and then by subsequently agreeing to acquire Active Assurances Groupe. These projects come on top of a large number of initiatives to foster organic growth that confirm the dynamism of Meilleurtaux. We are convinced that the teams of Active Assurances and Meilleurtaux will be complementary and that the operations will provide the Group’s customers with a comprehensive offering aligned with the Group’s missions: “inform, compare, support, all under the commitment to finding the best price.”

Alexandre Masson and Christophe Parier, Managing Partners of Activa Capital, said: “Since we invested alongside Bpifrance in May 2018, Active Assurances has experienced exceptional growth under the leadership of its managers. After two acquisitions, one of which in healthcare, the Group has achieved its target in less than three years. We are very proud and happy to have accompanied them.”

Overview of Groupe Meilleurtaux
Founded in 1999, Groupe Meilleurtaux has become the leading financial services marketplace for loans, insurance and investments for French consumers. Meilleurtaux offers a comprehensive range of services: financing (mortgage loans, debt consolidation, consumer loans, business loans), insurance (car, motorbike, health, home, and loan insurance) and investments (life insurance, REITs, community, newsletters). Its three missions are to inform, compare and support its customers across the range of financial services.

Since October 2020, Groupe Meilleurtaux has been majority-owned by funds advised by Silver Lake, the global leader in technology investing, managing a portfolio of more than $79 billion and having invested in companies that include Alibaba, Airbnb, Twitter, Skype, and more recently Silae and Cegid in France.

Meilleurtaux is a member of the French Tech 120, a national label for the fastest growing innovative French companies.

Find more information on Groupe Meilleurtaux on LinkedIn and Twitter.
Find Guillaume Autier on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Activa Capital
Activa Capital is an independent, partner-owned private equity firm with a proactive build-up strategy. It currently manages over €300 million on behalf of institutional investors, investing in French SMEs and mid- sized firms with high growth potential and an enterprise value of between €20 and €100 million. Activa Capital supports the firms’ development and their international presence. www.activacapital.com