TPG has entered the retail insurance distribution arena with the launch of tech-focused insurance platform Third Wave Insurance.
The move drops another deep-pocketed, private equity-backed player into an already crowded US brokerage landscape.
Third Wave Insurance is led by founder and CEO Brian Bair, a veteran of the US insurance distribution space. Its inaugural deal sees the platform partner with Palmer & Cay, which will serve as the company's flagship retail business. Palmer & Cay will retain its brand and continue under the leadership of CEO Jack Cay.
“Together with Brian and Jack, we have established a shared vision for a technology-enabled, highly professionalized insurance brokerage platform,” said BJ Loessberg, business unit partner at TPG Growth. “Throughout its 150+ year history, Palmer & Cay has built a client-focused culture that is fueled by attracting and developing top industry talent. Their team is an ideal anchor partner for Third Wave Insurance, and we see a significant opportunity to build on their impressive momentum, while scaling the platform through both organic and inorganic expansion.”
Bair framed the launch as the next step in a long cycle of broker transformation.
"Today, we are at the forefront of the technology wave of transformation in this space and are ready to drive meaningful change once again through the launch of Third Wave Insurance," Bair said. We’ve been impressed by Palmer & Cay’s remarkable legacy of success, entrepreneurial spirit, and client-first approach, and are thrilled to partner with Jack and his team.”
TPG Growth, the middle‑market and growth equity platform of TPG, is funding the strategic investment, with capital earmarked to help Palmer & Cay reinvest in core services, build new specialisms and recruit additional talent aligned with its culture.
After more than a decade of frenetic M&A, valuations have cooled slightly as interest rates have risen, but sponsor‑backed platforms are still hungry for high‑quality agencies with sticky mid‑market and upper‑middle‑market books, niche expertise and cross‑sell potential into employee benefits and private client.
At the same time, the underlying commercial P&C environment remains demanding. According to market data, US property insurance markets are still feeling the effects of repeated billion‑dollar catastrophe years, with capacity selective for nat cat‑exposed risks and insureds facing elevated rates and tighter terms.
Casualty lines also continue to grapple with social inflation, nuclear verdicts and rising claims costs, while cyber, D&O and other specialty lines have shifted from hardening spikes towards more nuanced, risk‑selective underwriting. Employers are also under pressure on healthcare and benefits costs, driving demand for more sophisticated advisory support.
This is the segment Third Wave is targeting first. Palmer & Cay’s book spans middle‑market to larger corporate commercial P&C, executive liability, surety, private equity portfolio work and employee benefits – exactly the space where regional brokers compete head‑to‑head with the branch networks of global brokers and other PE‑backed consolidators.
