CFC vs Founder Shield Representations and Warranties Insurance

CFC's Transaction Liability practice underwrites representations and warranties (R&W) insurance for M&A deals, available to both buyer-side and seller-side purchasers, alongside standalone small-deal products and secondary liquidity solutions. ⁵Company-reported. Transaction liability product page overview, describing CFC as a deal facilitator working with private equity firms and strategic buyers and sellers.

Founder Shield is a retail insurance brokerage, described on its site as “the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group,” and places Founder Shield Representations and Warranties Insurance with third-party carriers rather than underwriting the policy itself. ¹²Company-reported. About-us page; applies to Founder Shield's brokerage model generally, restated here for this line.

CFC says it underwrites transaction liability business on behalf of Lloyd's of London syndicates and insurance companies rated 'A' or better by AM Best, without naming a specific carrier for any individual deal. ⁵Company-reported. Limit & appetite section of the product page; the specific carrier for a given policy would appear on that policy's documents.

Founder Shield says it places policies, including Founder Shield Representations and Warranties Insurance, only with carriers rated A- or better by AM Best, chosen for the client's industry. It does not name the issuing insurer for this line; that depends on which carrier the policy is placed with. ⁸Company-reported. General carrier-selection FAQ, not specific to this line's placements.

Not described in the reviewed sources.

Founder Shield markets R&W insurance to private equity and other financial sponsors, strategic buyers, corporate sellers divesting a business unit, and family-owned businesses being sold. ¹¹Company-reported. Representations and Warranties Insurance product page.

Beyond its main R&W policy, CFC sells two standalone small-deal products: Buyer Protect, described as covering a buyer for up to 100% of enterprise value, and Seller Protect, described as protecting sellers of small businesses during an M&A transaction. Both are limited to deals under $20 million. ⁵Company-reported. Product page descriptions and the 'Solutions' section, which caps buyer protect/seller protect at deals under $20m. The page's key-features bullets for these two products use near-identical wording about the buyer bringing a claim, so the exact difference in claims mechanics between the two products was not independently confirmable from this page alone.

The core transaction liability policy covers representations and warranties, contingent tax, and other M&A liabilities, and CFC also offers excess coverage layered on top for certain fundamental representations. ⁵Company-reported. Product page key features and the 'Limit & appetite' section; exact terms are set by the policy as issued.

CFC separately offers secondary liquidity solutions for private market investors acquiring, divesting, or restructuring interests in private equity, private credit, or other fund assets, through what it calls a dedicated secondaries underwriting practice. ⁵Company-reported. Secondary liquidity solutions section of the product page.

Founder Shield lists financial-statement misstatements, undisclosed tax liabilities, legal or regulatory non-compliance, and undisclosed contracts or leases as the kinds of seller misrepresentations the policy can cover, mostly on the buyer side. ¹¹Company-reported. Product page; the issued policy and declarations control actual coverage.

CFC says it can underwrite up to $50 million of limit on a single transaction, or up to $150 million of excess coverage for certain fundamental representations. ⁵Company-reported. Limit & appetite section of the product page.

Founder Shield's page does not publish specific limit figures; it says premiums are typically a percentage of the negotiated policy limit, which is set per transaction. ¹¹Not publicly disclosed. Representations and Warranties Insurance product page, checked 2026-09-23.

For the Buyer Protect and Seller Protect products, CFC says coverage can be placed within 24 hours of receiving the application form, and can be arranged after closing. ⁵Company-reported. Buyer protect and seller protect key features on the product page.

You request Founder Shield Representations and Warranties Insurance through Founder Shield's website or an insurance advisor rather than binding coverage directly; Founder Shield says its placement team then approaches carriers on the client's behalf. ^12,8Company-reported. About-us and carrier-selection pages describe the general placement process, not a line-specific application form.

CFC has a dedicated transaction liability claims team in its London and New York offices, says it has handled nearly 300 claims to date, and aims to send an acknowledgement within 24 hours of a claim notification. ⁵Company-reported. Claims section of the product page; outcome statistics are company-reported and not independently verified.

Not described in the reviewed sources.