Dow Jones Newswires-WSJ | Ryan Specialty Group, a start-up insurance brokerage founded by the former chief executive of Aon Corp., has recruited about 100 employees from an insurance unit of BB&T Corp., according to people familiar with the matter.

The fledgling Chicago-based venture, launched in February by Pat Ryan, is expected to hire employees of CRC Insurance Services in multiple locales, including Chicago and Philadelphia, the people said.

In a note to clients and business partners this week, Tom Curtin, the CEO and founder of CRC Insurance Services, wrote that “a number of CRC employees in Illinois, California and Pennsylvania resigned” on May 4.

In a statement Thursday, Curtin confirmed that “approximately 100
employees (including brokers and staff)” left the company, though he
didn’t say where they were going. Curtin said, “we are reorganizing and
appropriately restaffing,” and said, “We will not be closing any offices
or exiting any markets.”

Ryan Specialty’s management team includes Timothy Turner, a former
president of CRC, which is one of the largest wholesale insurance
brokers in the U.S. Wholesale brokers act as middlemen in arranging
insurance coverage for unusual risk.

CRC was formed in Birmingham, Ala., in 1982 and acquired by BB&T in
2002. CRC’s website says it employs 1,052 people in 29 offices.

The departures represent about 10% of CRC’s head count. The client note
from Curtin of CRC said the company’s counsel is “closely monitoring and
evaluating the situation to ensure that CRC and its clients are
protected.”

In 1964, Ryan founded the company that would become Aon by pioneering
the sale of car warranties at auto dealerships. He built it into one of
the world’s largest insurance brokers through a series of mergers before
stepping down as CEO in 2005 and as executive chairman in 2008.

Before setting up Ryan Specialty this year, Ryan led Chicago’s bid to
host the 2016 Olympics. Rio de Janeiro was picked to host the games that
year instead.

BB&T also offers insurance through its BB&T Insurance Services
subsidiary and McGriff, Seibels & Williams, which provides coverage
to large commercial and energy clients.

Ryan Specialty’s offices are housed within the Aon Center in Chicago.
The firm doesn’t compete with Aon, which sold its wholesale broker,
Swett & Crawford, in 2005.