BP Marsh & Partners names new chair as net asset value and payout rise

Wed, 27th May 2026 10:00

(Alliance News) - BP Marsh & Partners PLC on Wednesday announced a new chair to replace founder Brian Marsh, as the private equity investor reported a rise in net asset value and confirmed its dividend plans.

BP Marsh invests in early stage and small to medium-sized financial services intermediary businesses, particularly in the insurance sector.

The London-based company was founded by Brian Marsh in 1990, and he was executive chair until this past December, moving to non-executive chair after Dan Topping was promoted to chief executive officer from chief investment officer.

Marsh will leave the board immediately, replaced by Rebecca Shelley, who joined as non-executive chair on Tuesday. Marsh called the handover "a significant moment in the history of BP Marsh".

Shelley is chair of Sabre Insurance Group PLC and senior independent director of Conduit Holdings Ltd.

Shelley also is senior director of Liontrust Asset Management PLC and a non-executive director of Hilton Food Group PLC, but both companies on Wednesday said she will leave their boards to take up the new BP Marsh role. Liontrust said Shelley will leave at its annual general meeting in September, while Hilton Food said she will depart on a date to be finalised.

Barrie Cornes will join the BP Marsh board as an additional non-executive director. Cornes was managing director & head of research at broker Panmure Gordon, specialising in the insurance sector.

BP Marsh said undiluted NAV per share was 1,009.9 pence on January 31, its financial year-end, up 13% from 890.0p a year before. Fully diluted NAV per share was 959.8p, also up 13%, from 847.3p. Total NAV was GBP360.2 million, up 10% from GBP326.4 million a year before.

BP Marsh last year completed GBP6.9 million in share buybacks, reducing its share total.

Total shareholder return in the recent year was 12.8%, BP Marsh said. It paid 21.64p per share in dividends for financial 2026 and will pay a total 36.29p for financial 2027, including a special dividend paid in March to distribute proceeds from the disposal of Stewart Specialty Risk Underwriting Ltd. The company confirmed it will pay a minimum of 19.54p in dividends for financial 2028.

Pretax profit for financial 2026 was GBP49.0 million, down from GBP104.7 million in financial 2025, a year which had benefited from the recognition of significant unrealised gains, the company explained.

BP Marsh shares were up 3.7% to 700.00p in London on Wednesday morning.

By Tom Waite, Alliance News editor

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