Cobbs Allen Announces Hiring of Sparks and Sonderman and Creation of Specialty Insurance Brokerage Business

Cobbs Allen announces the hiring of industry veterans Paul Sparks and Darren Sonderman to lead a new venture in the growing Cobbs Allen portfolio. Sparks and Sonderman each bring over 25 years of experience gained from founding and leading the Financial Services Division of McGriff, Seibels & Williams, Inc.

The new venture is focused on providing complex risk solutions for corporate and private equity clients. It will combine structured solutions capabilities with insurance brokerage services to offer clients more alternatives utilizing risk- taking capacity from both the insurance and private capital markets. Given the current risk environment and evolving insurance market landscape, it is the optimal time for a sophisticated, value-added new entrant.

“This new venture will be at the forefront of innovation and disruption, and we are thrilled to join Cobbs Allen to build this business together,” Sparks said. “The current insurance brokerage market dynamics make it the ideal time to create a new insurance brokerage platform to once again refocus on client service and innovation. The new company will be private, and majority controlled by employees, attracting the best talent in the industry, while at the same time, avoiding short-term pressures associated with being controlled by outside investors.”

“Cobbs Allen is the right partner to bring innovative traditional and non-traditional solutions to corporate and sponsor clients,” Sonderman said. “There is tremendous opportunity to help our clients realize their goals in the current market and we are excited to leverage experience, technology and deep underwriting relationships to make this happen.”

“Sparks and Sonderman bring extensive experience and an unparalleled track record of success,” said Bruce Denson, President of Cobbs Allen. “We are excited to work with them to build a new team.”

The business will be announcing the hiring of additional key leaders, along with further details concerning the platform, in the coming weeks. For information about current job opportunities, please visit careers.