Sands Point tops $250 million GWP

Exclusive: Sands Point tops $250 million GWP with Launch Environmental deal and plans PVT, aviation and D&O programs

Sands Point Risk has made its largest acquisition to date with a deal for Launch Environmental Underwriters, taking the Avesi Partners-backed MGA platform’s combined gross written premium above $250 million, according to people familiar with the matter.

Sands Point declined to comment. Launch Environmental declined to comment.

Launch Environmental will form the cornerstone of Sands Point’s new environmental practice.

Launch Environmental CEO John O’Brien and his team are joining Sands Point as part of the deal. Launch Environmental is the environmental liability arm of the Launch Underwriters platform.

Terms of the transaction could not immediately be confirmed.

Alongside the acquisition, Sands Point is preparing to launch new MGA programs in political violence and terrorism, aviation and D&O, broadening the platform’s specialty footprint, according to people familiar with the matter.

Launch Environmental specializes in environmental liability insurance for complex risks across the energy, infrastructure, construction, chemical, M&A and industrial sectors.

The deal is Sands Point’s second acquisition, following its July 2025 deal for Pennsylvania-based medical stop-loss MGU BRM Specialty Markets.

Sands Point was launched in early 2024 by former Dual transactional liability executives Dennis Kearns, Pat Darragh and Dan Simnowitz, with backing from Avesi Partners.

The private equity sponsor has articulated an ambition to build the platform to $1 billion in premium within three to five years through a combination of organic team builds and one to two acquisitions per year.

In addition to transactional liability and medical stop-loss, Sands Point operates a New York construction program launched in January 2025 with capacity from RLI.

As The Insurer previously reported, the firm’s transactional liability consortium includes Accelerant, Convex, Axis, Vantage and Obsidian, with capacity above $25 million.