NFP Expands Alternative Risk Offerings with Group Captive Practice

NEW YORK, NY – March 04, 2026 – NFP, a leading insurance brokerage and consulting firm, has formally entered the group captive insurance market with the launch of a new Property and Casualty (P&C) Group Captive practice. The move was solidified through the strategic acquisition of Trinity Risk Advisors, LLC, a specialized captive brokerage firm based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Industry veteran Alan Wise, the founder of Trinity Risk Advisors, will spearhead the new division as a managing director. This appointment marks a return for Wise, who previously sold another firm, Trinity Consulting, to NFP in 2015. The new practice is designed to provide small and mid-sized businesses with an alternative to the traditional insurance market, enabling them to gain greater control over risk management costs and long-term financial stability.

A Strategic Expansion for the Mid-Market

NFP's launch of the group captive practice represents a significant enhancement of its alternative risk transfer capabilities, specifically targeting a segment of the market often seeking more sophisticated financial tools. This initiative complements the company's existing captive consulting and management arm, the Risk and Insurance Strategy Collective (RISC).

While RISC, based in Burlington, Vermont, has historically focused on structures like single-parent captives, segregated cell captives, and risk retention groups (RRGs) often favored by larger corporations, the new practice fills a crucial gap. It is explicitly designed to guide small and mid-sized clients through the complexities of group captive participation.

"We're excited to formally establish a group captive solution that helps small and mid-size clients retain certain risks at lower costs," said Meg McSherry, managing director and head of P&C in NFP's Atlantic region, to whom Wise will report. "Alan's technical expertise and leadership in managing all aspects of the group captive model will enable clients to unlock its benefits and position themselves for long-term financial strength and stability."

The practice will offer end-to-end support, from evaluating a company's eligibility and building a financial case for participation, to identifying the most suitable group captive program and managing the onboarding process. This hands-on approach aims to demystify captive insurance for businesses that may have previously considered it out of reach.

The Growing Appeal of Group Captives

The move by NFP, an Aon company, taps into a powerful trend in the corporate world: a flight to control. In an era of volatile insurance premiums and hardening market conditions, many businesses are looking beyond traditional policies for more predictable and efficient ways to manage risk. Group captives have emerged as a compelling solution.

A group captive is an insurance company owned and controlled by its members. Rather than paying premiums to a third-party insurer that retains all underwriting profit, members of a group captive pool their resources to insure their own collective risks. Premiums are based on each member's specific loss history, directly rewarding companies with strong safety and risk management programs.

The benefits are substantial. Members gain insulation from the swings of the commercial insurance market, leading to more stable and often lower long-term costs. Furthermore, if the captive performs well and claims are low, the members themselves share in the underwriting profits and investment income, which can be returned as dividends. This structure transforms insurance from a pure expense into a potential profit center. Group captives also offer greater flexibility in tailoring coverage to the specific needs of the member businesses, a level of customization often unavailable in standard off-the-shelf policies.

This model is particularly attractive for financially sound, mid-sized companies committed to loss control. By joining a group of other high-performing, like-minded businesses, they are no longer subsidizing the poor loss records of others in a large, traditional insurance pool.

A Veteran Leader Returns to the Fold

Central to NFP's new venture is the leadership of Alan Wise. His return to the company underscores the importance of specialized expertise in the complex world of captive insurance. Wise founded Trinity Risk Advisors to focus exclusively on the group captive space after a successful career in risk management, which included his previous role as a managing director within NFP's Southeast region following the 2015 sale of Trinity Consulting.

This long-standing relationship suggests a high degree of trust and strategic alignment. Wise is not just an external hire but a proven entrepreneur with deep domain knowledge being integrated back into the NFP ecosystem to build a critical new service line. His experience will be pivotal in both client-facing activities and internal development.

"I'm thrilled to help launch NFP's Group Captive practice and provide clients with a collaborative risk-sharing mechanism tailored to their risk management needs," Wise stated. He also highlighted a key internal objective: education. "The educational component is especially exciting. I'll be advising NFP producers on the most effective group captive structures available in the market, helping clients achieve greater cost efficiency, improved cash flow and more control of their insurance programs."

This focus on internal training is designed to embed group captive knowledge across NFP's extensive network of producers, ensuring that the solution can be effectively presented to a wide range of clients who stand to benefit.

Navigating a Competitive Insurance Landscape

NFP's dedicated push into group captives places it in a dynamic and competitive segment of the financial services industry. Major global brokers, including NFP's parent company Aon and its competitor Marsh, have well-established captive management practices that serve thousands of clients worldwide. These firms leverage vast data sets and global resources to offer sophisticated alternative risk solutions.

However, NFP's strategy appears to be a targeted one. By acquiring a specialist firm like Trinity Risk Advisors and appointing its founder to lead the practice, NFP is signaling a commitment to deep, specialized expertise rather than a purely scale-driven approach. The explicit focus on small and mid-sized clients further refines its position, catering to a market segment that requires a high-touch, consultative approach to navigate the transition from traditional insurance.

The success of the new practice will depend on its ability to demonstrate tangible value to these businesses, helping them not only save money but also foster a more robust culture of risk management. By combining the agility and specialized focus of a boutique firm with the significant resources and market reach of the broader NFP and Aon network, the P&C Group Captive practice is positioned to offer a compelling value proposition. This strategic alignment provides a tiered approach to alternative risk financing, ensuring NFP can serve the unique needs of businesses from the mid-market to the largest global corporations.