HUB International: insurance broker profile

Overview

HUB International is a privately owned insurance broker headquartered in Chicago. In Business Insurance's ranking of the world's largest brokers, published June 26, 2026, HUB placed No. 7, down one place, with 2025 brokerage revenue of $4.75 billion, up 10.1%, and gross revenue of $5.28 billion, up 9.8%. HUB's own release of May 12, 2025 gave annual revenue of $4.8 billion for 2024 and said it had more than 19,000 employees. Marc Cohen is chairman and chief executive.

HUB describes itself as a full-service global broker and financial services firm offering risk management, insurance, employee benefits, retirement and wealth products. Its website says it has more than 700 offices across North America and more than 1.5 million clients. Business Insurance reported organic growth in the mid-single digits in 2025.

History

HUB's own history page says the company began in 1998, when 11 Canadian brokerages merged. Since then it has grown mostly by buying agencies in the United States and Canada, and its owners have changed several times. By HUB's account, its valuation moved from $4.4 billion in 2013, when Hellman & Friedman made its first investment, to $10 billion in 2018, when Altas Partners took a minority stake, and to $23 billion in 2023, when Leonard Green & Partners announced a minority investment. Annual revenue rose from $1.1 billion in 2013 to $4.8 billion in 2024, according to the company.

Services

HUB sells commercial property and casualty insurance, employee benefits and group health, personal lines, and retirement and wealth services. HUB's own description lists risk management, insurance, employee benefits, retirement and wealth management as its product areas, and its compensation page refers to wholesale brokerage and loss control administration. Because HUB also does wholesale brokerage, one of its offices can sometimes act on both sides of a placement, a point worth asking about; wholesale brokers and surplus lines placement: how hard risks get insured explains that channel.

Who it serves

HUB's footprint is built around local offices. The firm's more than 700 North American offices serve local businesses, individuals and employers, and Business Insurance reported that the company targets agencies with strong sales cultures, established producers and a record of organic growth. Many HUB offices were independent agencies with their own names, so the local team you work with may have been in place for years. If you are comparing it with a large national broker or a local agency, how to choose a commercial insurance broker and independent agent, broker, captive agent or direct? cover the choices.

How it is paid

HUB publishes a "How We Get Paid" page. It says HUB earns:

• Commissions, usually a percentage of premium paid by the insurer and included in the premium you pay.
• Contingency income, extra amounts insurers may pay, typically tied to growth, loss results and renewals, based on the size or profitability of a group of accounts and not any single policy.
• Guaranteed supplemental commissions, fixed amounts that some insurers pay in place of contingent commissions, set yearly in advance based on past performance.
• Client-paid fees, which HUB may negotiate for complex programs or added services and which are outlined in a proposal and approved in writing before coverage is bound.
• Other compensation from wholesale brokerage, fees for data services to insurers, premium finance administration, interest on fiduciary accounts and policy, claims or loss control administration.

The page also says certain preferred insurers may pay "enhanced compensation," which HUB says it uses partly to improve service and to encourage its employees to use those carriers. Ask any broker how that applies to you. how commercial insurance brokers get paid explains the models in general.

Recent deals

• May 12, 2025 investment: HUB announced a minority common equity investment of about $1.6 billion at a $29 billion total enterprise valuation, which it described as the largest enterprise value to date for a private insurance broker. Funds advised by T. Rowe Price Investment Management, Alpha Wave Global and Temasek led the round, with other new and existing investors. Hellman & Friedman kept control, with Altas Partners and Leonard Green & Partners remaining significant minority shareholders. The release said the deal was expected to close by the end of May 2025.
• Acquisition pace: Business Insurance reported 49 acquisitions in 2025, 61 in 2024 and 65 in 2023, and said HUB added about 1,600 net new employees in 2025 through hiring and deals. The article named no individual acquisitions and we did not verify any.
• Possible IPO: the same article said HUB is preparing for a possible initial public offering, with no timing given.

See private equity and the consolidation of insurance brokers for the broader private-equity pattern.

Strengths and weaknesses

HUB gives a mid-sized business a local office backed by national resources and a large benefits practice. Business Insurance quoted Cohen as saying acquisitions are "a core competency, but it is not what makes this company great," and the company reports a pivot toward organic growth. The firm has also invested in artificial intelligence; the article describes a partnership with Anthropic as a growth tool.

• Strengths: deep North American office network; both property-casualty and benefits; a disclosed compensation page.
• Weaknesses: private ownership means limited public financial disclosure; "enhanced compensation" from preferred insurers needs scrutiny; integration of many acquired agencies.

How to contact HUB International