Following the acquisitions of MGAs such as Financial Horizons Group, PPI and Aurrea Signature, who will be next? Insurers are buying MGAs and they will continue to do so, said Denis Ricard, CEO of iA Financial Group. "We are making small acquisitions to strengthen our network, but people should not expect us to buy another big consolidator," he said.

Monique Maynard, Quebec president of Canada Life, said that within the group that owns Canada Life, there have been acquisitions and there will be others, because the MGA community is also in the midst of consolidation.

At Sun Life Financial, they haven’t yet acquired an MGA, "which does not mean that we will never do it," said Robert Dumas, Quebec president of the insurer.

The panelists said they also believe that MGAs will need to further refine their technology. Denis Ricard said that his company has always had relationships with MGAs. “We have to have the simplest products, tools and business processes possible. Simplification is key,” he said.

The digital shift is not only beneficial for consumers, it must also serve to improve the efficiency of intermediaries, including MGAs, added Monique Maynard.

Robert Dumas said there is a need to train MGAs so that they better use social media to reach customers.

This article is a magazine supplement. To consult our Special Report on Managing General Agents published in the April 2020 edition of Insurance Journal, click here.