Commerce Bancorp, Cherry Hill, N.J., said it will buy the largest insurance brokerage in Delaware by the end of this quarter.
The acquisition of J.A. Montgomery Inc., Wilmington, would add $70 million in annual insurance premiums to the bank's growing insurance arm, Commerce National Insurance Services. That would bring the bank's total premium volume to $350 million annually, said David Flaherty, a bank spokesman.
Montgomery, which was established in the mid-1800s, provides commercial, personal, and employee benefit insurance brokerage services for 16,000 clients throughout Delaware. Commerce will keep the insurance brokerage's employees.
Commerce collected $250 million in premiums last year. And an aggressive acquisition policy-four agencies in two years-has built Commerce's insurance presence to 40,000 clients.