According to the press release via PR Newswire, international private equity firm Cinven and global investment group La Caisse — the new name for what was formerly known as CDPQ (Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec) — have reached an agreement to jointly acquire Optio Group, a specialty insurance Managing General Agent (MGA) platform headquartered in London. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
About Optio
Founded in 2018, Optio originates, underwrites, and manages specialty risk on behalf of more than 60 third-party capacity providers. The company underwrites a diversified portfolio spanning six business lines — Profession & Specialty, Transportation, Property & Energy, Healthcare, Transactional Liability, and Surety & Credit — across more than 30 products. Optio operates 18 offices in 15 countries, spanning the UK, Europe, the US, the Middle East, and Asia. The company is currently backed by Preservation Capital Partners.
Why Cinven and La Caisse Are Investing
Both firms cited Optio’s exposure to a structurally growing specialty MGA market, its capital-light business model, its track record of attracting and retaining underwriting talent, and significant opportunity for further organic and acquisition-driven growth in a fragmented market. The deal builds on Cinven’s existing track record in specialty underwriting and financial services, which includes investments in Compre, Miller, and Policy Expert. For La Caisse, the deal extends a long-standing global focus on insurance platforms across Europe, North America, and Australia.
Executive Commentary
Luigi Sbrozzi, Partner and Co-Head of Strategic Funds at Cinven, described Optio as a standout opportunity in the MGA space and praised CEO Deepak Soni and the wider management team for building a differentiated platform for specialty underwriting talent, adding that Cinven looks forward to partnering with La Caisse to support Optio’s next phase of growth.
Martin Longchamps, Executive Vice-President and Head of Private Equity and Private Credit at La Caisse, pointed to the growing importance of technical underwriting expertise, disciplined risk selection, and scale in the specialty insurance market, framing the investment as reflecting La Caisse’s confidence in the sector’s long-term fundamentals and its experience across the insurance value chain.
Deepak Soni, Optio’s CEO, welcomed Cinven and La Caisse as partners for what he called the next chapter of the company’s story, crediting prior backer Preservation Capital Partners for helping build a diversified global platform through investment in Optio’s teams and the acquisition of specialist MGAs, and expressing confidence that the new shareholder group would support continued growth while preserving the company’s entrepreneurial culture.
Deal Status
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and other standard closing conditions.
About the Parties
Cinven is an international private equity firm investing across six sectors — Business Services, Consumer, Financial Services, Healthcare, Industrials, and Technology, Media and Telecommunications — with offices in London, New York, Frankfurt, Paris, Milan, Madrid, and Luxembourg.
La Caisse has invested on behalf of Québec depositors for more than 60 years, with a dual mandate of generating long-term returns while supporting Québec’s economic development. As of December 31, 2025, its net assets totaled CAD 517 billion.