AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Frost Insurance, the insuranceagency subsidiary of Frost, today announced it has acquired Prime Benefits,Inc., an independent Austin-based insurance agency that specializes inproviding employee benefits to businesses, effective December 1. Making the announcement were Dick Evans, chairman and CEO ofCullen/Frost Bankers, Inc., parent company of Frost, and Lee Cameron andJack Joyce, principals of Prime Benefits, Inc. "We continue to build our Frost team to bring the best banking,investment and insurance services to our customers in all markets we serve,and Prime Benefits is certainly a great asset to Frost going forward," saidEvans. "This acquisition reinforces our commitment to building afirst-class insurance brokerage operation statewide." "Two great teams are coming together and the real benefit is tocustomers in this market who are looking for depth of service andexperience for employee benefits as well as property and casualty," saidMarvin Rickabaugh, Austin region president for Frost. "This acquisitionstrengthens our ability to meet all the financial, investment and insuranceneeds of our customers." According to Dennis Northington, Austin market president for FrostInsurance, "Partnering with this strong Austin-based agency will strengthenour employee benefits offerings. Their focus on helping business owners isa great fit for Frost and will allow us to expand the benefits services wecan offer our business customers in Austin." "In joining with Frost Insurance, we will become a full-serviceinsurance agency," said Lee Cameron. "Since starting our business, we havehad a strategic focus on profitable growth by offering a full-range ofemployee benefits to our business clients. Now we will be able to providethem with additional insurance products, including property and casualtyand retirement services. Both Frost and Prime Benefits are home-grown Texascompanies, and we are delighted to become a part of this great Frostorganization." "The Frost culture is a great match with our approach to doingbusiness, both from a client and employee perspective," said Jack Joyce."We are excited about the opportunity to offer our clients additionalcapabilities and benefits. At the same time, we look forward to expandingour employee benefits services to existing Frost clients." Prime Benefits offers group employee benefits plans -- includingmedical and dental, life, long-term care and disability insurance --primarily for businesses. Each of the Prime Benefits partners, Lee Cameronand Jack Joyce, has more than 20 years of experience in employee benefits.The company and its ten employees will be fully integrated into FrostInsurance and plan to move to the Frost Insurance offices in the Frost BankTower in Austin in December. Prime Benefits, Inc. is the eighth acquisition made by Frost Insurance.Earlier acquisitions include: Professional Insurance Agents, Inc. in 1999;Houston-based Wayland Hancock Insurance Agency, Inc. in 2000; Austin-basedNieman Hanks Puryear and Nieman Hanks Puryear Benefits in 2000; FortWorth-based AIS Insurance and Risk Management in 2001, Victoria-basedJentsch Financial Group in 2002; Fort-Worth-based Brokers Insurance Designsin 2003; and Dallas-based The Sammons Group in 2004. Frost Insurance, the insurance subsidiary of Frost, ranks among the top40 in bank-owned agencies in insurance revenue in the nation, providing afull range of property and casualty, group employee benefits, estateplanning and business succession and personal insurance needs throughoutTexas. Frost is the banking operation of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR), a $13.2 billion financial holding company, headquartered in SanAntonio, with more than 100 financial centers across Texas. Frost providesan array of business and consumer banking products, investment andbrokerage services, insurance products and investment banking services.Founded in 1868, Frost is one of the largest Texas-based bankingorganizations, with a legacy of helping Texans with their financial needsduring three centuries.
