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Maersk Broker Sold After 109 Years to Become MB Shipbrokers

Maersk Broker
Maersk Broker was sold by the family after 109 years to company management (MB Shipbrokers)

Published Dec 29, 2023 6:45 PM by The Maritime Executive

 

The management of Maersk Broker, one of the oldest continuously operating brokers in the shipping industry, has agreed to a management-led buyout of the firm from its long-standing owners, the Mc-Kinney Møller family.  The announcement ends speculation over the future of the firm but with it brings to a close the well-known identity. The company is being renamed in the new year MB Shipbrokers.

“The change of ownership is based on a common ambition of the seller and the buyer to preserve the more than 100 years legacy and to secure the company’s position long-term, under a new name with a new ownership structure,” reads the announcement posted to Maersk Broker’s social media.

The terms agreed to call for the current management and employees of Maersk Broker to undertake the buyout. They are emphasizing that while it will be under a new brand identity, there will be no changes to the operation of the company. It will be “business as usual in all aspects,” they announced.

"The owners and the Board of Directors have for some time explored different ownership structures to ensure the company remains strongly positioned for the future,” said Kristian Mørch, Chairman of the Board of Maersk Broker. He has led the company since 2019 when he took the lead from the family members. “Acknowledging the unwavering commitment of the management and employees to preserve the legacy and values that have been the foundation for Maersk Broker’s success for generations, we believe they are the right owners to ensure the continued success of the company in decades to come.”

The company traces its origins to 1914 when Mr. A.P. Møller started the company as a small, independent Danish shipbroking operation. Denmark has a long heritage in the brokering business, and while Maersk Broker evolved over the years, the company has remained privately owned by the Mc-Kinney Møller family. It continued under the family leadership until 2019, when Ane Maersk Mc-Kinney Uggla, granddaughter of the founder, retired after being on the board of directors for 24 years and nine years as Chairman.

Since it start offering ship brokering and also charter services, the company has been independent of the shipping company operations. Today, the company is among the global leaders in the shipbroking industry also offering valuation and advisory services ranging from finance to decarbonization. The company has offices located in all major shipping hubs and employs close to 250 people.