First Ireland’s joint managing directors Tony Gill and Linda Gallagher will remain with the business, reporting to Mr Foley.
“I’ve been keen on looking at [First Ireland] for a number of years,” Mr Foley said, adding that the acquisition gives Gallagher “a base in Dublin, which we didn’t have”.within the Irish market, which continues to attract private equity investment. Gallagher Ireland also acquired Wexford-based broker Doyle Mahon Insurances in November 2022. The group says it now has a team of more than 275 supporting its Irish clients.
“I think I see another 12 months of it at least,” he said. “I don’t see it falling off any time. So obviously, there will be [fewer and fewer] large targets out there. But there’s still quite a lot of smaller, mid-sized brokers that are interested in how to scale their business up. And they’re looking at other options for the future.”