INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ? Insurance brokerage Aon Corp. plans to move its corporate headquarters from Chicago to London to improve its access to emerging markets and increase its financial flexibility.
Aon said Friday the move will help it take advantage of strategic proximity to Lloyd's and the London market, which it calls one of the key international hubs of insurance and risk brokerage.
The company already has a big presence in the United Kingdom. It is the main sponsor of the soccer team Manchester United through a four-year contract totaling 80 million British pounds ($122.6 million). Manchester United is ranked as the most valuable soccer team in the world by Forbes magazine.
Aon also has about 6,000 employees in London in its risk brokerage and human resources consulting businesses.
The brokerage said the move will provide it with increased financial flexibility and improved capital allocation.
"As the proportion of Aon's revenue from international operations continues to grow, the ability to allocate capital for investment and growth will be vital to the firm's continued success," the company said in a statement.
Last month, U.S. authorities said Aon agreed to pay more than $16 million to settle criminal and civil allegations that it bribed employees of government-owned companies and others in several countries between 1983 and 2007. That included paying $14.5 million in restitution and interest to settle Securities and Exchange Commission civil charges and a $1.76 million criminal fine in an agreement with the Justice Department.
Aon neither admitted nor denied the civil allegations under the SEC settlement. It agreed to avoid future violations of securities laws.
The company's decision to move its corporate headquarters had "absolutely nothing at all" to do with the settlement, said David Prosperi, Aon's vice president of global public relations.
"This is a decision based on our global growth strategy," he said.
Aon will change its jurisdiction of incorporation from Delaware to England, but it expects Aon UK to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange and to report earnings and other financial statements in accordance with the SEC requirements.
The move needs shareholder approval, and Aon expects it to close in the second quarter. Shareholders will receive one share of the newly formed English public limited company for each share of common stock.
The company said Chicago will remain its headquarters for the Americas and the move won't result in job loss in Chicago or the United States. The company employs 61,000 people globally and expects to create 1,000 new jobs this year.
Aon provides risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage and human resources services.
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