Insurance broker relocates incorporation from Delaware to England to provide greater access to emerging markets and to Lloyd’s of London
Aon Corporation announced last week that it is to move its corporate headquarters from Chicago to London and will change its jurisdiction of incorporation from Delaware to England. In doing so, Aon becomes the first S&P 500 company to be domiciled in the United Kingdom. Aon’s press release about the move is here.
The move, which is subject to shareholder approval,will be effected by each Aon stockholder receiving one Class A Ordinary Share (US$ denominated) in a newly formed English public limited company in exchange for each share of common stock of Aon the stockholder holds. That UK holding company is expected to be listed on the NYSE and to report earnings and other financial statements in accordance with Securities and Exchange Commission regulations.
Aon’s stated reason is that the re-domicile will provide:
“…greater access to emerging markets and takes better advantage of the strategic proximity to Lloyd’s and the London market as one of the key international hubs of insurance and risk brokerage.”
The UK government’s decision to reform the controlled foreign companies regime (see an informative note from PwC here) may also have influenced Aon’s decision to move to London.
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