Hub International’s 2025 results point to a shift in emphasis: acquisitions remain part of the growth model, but the brokerage is putting more weight on organic expansion. Revenue rose despite a lower deal count, while CEO Marc Cohen highlighted sales, retention, recruiting and technology as the drivers he wants investors and the industry to watch.
Revenue grows as deal volume eases
Brokerage revenue increased 10.1% to $4.75 billion in 2025, and gross revenue rose 9.8% to $5.28 billion. Hub fell one place to No. 7 in Business Insurance’s ranking of the world’s largest brokerages.
The company completed 49 acquisitions during the year, compared with 61 in 2024 and 65 in 2023. That’s a slower pace, though Hub remained one of the industry’s most active buyers. Cohen said the brokerage generated “mid-single-digit” organic growth, with contributions from new business, cross-selling, client retention and recruiting.
“Every line of business had better sales in 2025 than they did in 2024 against the backdrop of a volatile insurance and economic market,” he said. Hub added about 1,600 net new employees through hiring and acquisitions, including more than 350 producers.
Acquisitions as a growth accelerator
For Cohen, the deal count isn’t the measure of what makes Hub successful. “M&A is a core competency, but it is not what makes this company great,” he said. “What makes this company great is our organic growth strategies and investments in both people and technology.”
Hub looks for agencies with strong sales cultures, established producers and a track record of organic growth, rather than pursuing deals simply to increase scale. “We really look at M&A as an accelerant for our organic growth,” Cohen said.
Tim Zawacki, an insurance sector strategist at S&P Global Market Intelligence in Charlottesville, Virginia, said Hub’s scale makes individual acquisitions less consequential to the overall business. He described the greater focus on organic growth as a sensible development for a more mature brokerage.
Deal selection is also becoming more demanding across the sector. Timothy J. Cunningham, managing director at Chicago-based Optis Partners, said large firms are increasingly seeking businesses with distinctive or strategic attributes. “The inventory has been depleted somewhat significantly,” he said.
Even so, analysts say Hub continues to pursue acquisitions while many large peers have slowed. Zawacki pointed to the company’s consistency as another factor in its performance: “When I think about how they’ve been able to succeed, they’ve really stayed true to their knitting and their business plan.” Despite changes in private-equity ownership over nearly two decades, he said, “the core business model has remained intact.”
Capital, technology and IPO preparation
Hub’s next phase follows a major investment transaction in May 2025. Funds advised by T. Rowe Price Investment Management, Alpha Wave Global and Temasek Holdings led a $1.6 billion minority investment, raising the brokerage’s valuation from $23 billion to $29 billion and placing it among the most highly valued private insurance brokerages.
Artificial intelligence is another element of the company’s growth plans. Hub has invested in AI technology, including a partnership with Anthropic. Cohen said the company sees AI as a way to support expansion, not only to cut costs: “We are all in. We view AI as a force multiplier, not just an efficiency play.”
A potential initial public offering also remains under consideration. In an emailed statement, Cohen said Hub is preparing for that possibility, while making clear that any decision would depend on valuation and board alignment. “We’re going through all the necessary steps so that at, the right time, if valuations are at a place where it makes sense and the board is aligned, we’re prepared to push the go button, if it’s the right thing to do for the company and our shareholders,” he said.
For now, Hub’s message is that its long-term growth case rests on more than acquisitions. Cohen said its people, producers and client-first model are what support sustained organic growth—a priority likely to become more visible as the brokerage grows larger.