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Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)
 9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2025
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Basis of Presentation
Basis of Presentation

White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd. (the “Company” or the “Registrant”) is an exempted Bermuda limited liability company whose principal businesses are conducted through its subsidiaries and other affiliates. The Company’s headquarters is located at 26 Reid Street, Hamilton, Bermuda HM 11, its principal executive office is located at 23 South Main Street, Suite 3B, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755-2053 and its registered office is located at Clarendon House, 2 Church Street, Hamilton, Bermuda HM 11. The Company’s website is www.whitemountains.com. The information contained on White Mountains’s website is not incorporated by reference into, and is not a part of, this report.
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) and include the accounts of the Company, its subsidiaries and other entities required to be consolidated under GAAP (collectively with the Company, “White Mountains”). Intercompany transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Certain amounts in the prior period financial statements have been reclassified to conform to the current presentation.
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
These interim financial statements include all adjustments considered necessary by management to fairly state the financial position, results of operations and cash flows of White Mountains. These interim financial statements may not be indicative of financial results for the full year and should be read in conjunction with the Company’s 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Reportable Segments
Reportable Segments
As of September 30, 2025, White Mountains conducted its operations through five reportable segments: (1) Ark/WM Outrigger, (2) HG Global, (3) Kudu, (4) Bamboo and (5) Distinguished, with its remaining operating businesses, holding companies and other assets included in Other Operations. White Mountains has made its segment determination based on consideration of the following criteria: (i) the nature of the business activities of each of the Company’s subsidiaries and affiliates; (ii) the manner in which the Company’s subsidiaries and affiliates are organized; (iii) the existence of primary managers responsible for specific subsidiaries and affiliates; and (iv) the organization of information provided to the Company’s chief operating decision makers (“CODMs”) and its Board of Directors. See Note 14 — “Segment Information.”
The Ark/WM Outrigger segment consists of Ark Insurance Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries (collectively, “Ark”) and Outrigger Re Ltd. Segregated Account 2023-1 (“WM Outrigger Re”) (collectively with Ark, “Ark/WM Outrigger”). Ark is a specialty property and casualty insurance and reinsurance company that offers a wide range of niche insurance and reinsurance products, including property, specialty, marine & energy, casualty and accident & health. Ark underwrites select coverages through Lloyd’s Syndicates 4020 and 3902 and Additional Central Settlement Number (“ACSN”) 3832 (collectively, the “Syndicates”) and its wholly-owned subsidiary Group Ark Insurance Limited (“GAIL”). White Mountains acquired a controlling ownership interest in Ark on January 1, 2021 (the “Ark Transaction”). As of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, White Mountains owned 72.1% of Ark on a basic shares outstanding basis (61.9% after taking account of management’s equity incentives). The remaining shares are owned by current and former employees of Ark. In the future, management rollover shareholders could earn additional shares in Ark if and to the extent that White Mountains achieves certain thresholds for its multiple of invested capital (“MOIC”) return. If fully earned, these shares would represent an additional 12.3% of the shares outstanding as of September 30, 2025. The liability related to these additional shares is recorded as contingent consideration. During the fourth quarter of 2022, Ark sponsored the formation of Outrigger Re Ltd., a Bermuda company registered as a special purpose insurer and segregated accounts company, to provide collateralized reinsurance protection on Ark’s Bermuda global property catastrophe excess of loss portfolio for the 2023 underwriting year. Ark renewed its quota share reinsurance agreement with Outrigger Re Ltd. for the 2024 and 2025 underwriting years. White Mountains consolidates the results of its segregated account, WM Outrigger Re, in its financial statements. See Note 2 — “Significant Transactions.” As of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, White Mountains owned 100.0% of WM Outrigger Re’s preferred equity.
The HG Global segment consists of HG Global Ltd. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively, “HG Global”) and, prior to its deconsolidation on July 1, 2024, the consolidated results of Build America Mutual Assurance Company (“BAM”). See Note 2 — “Significant Transactions.” HG Global was established to fund the startup of BAM and, through its reinsurance subsidiary, HG Re Ltd. (“HG Re”), to provide first-loss reinsurance protection of up to 15%-of-par outstanding for each policy assumed from BAM. HG Global, together with its subsidiaries, funded the initial capitalization of BAM through the purchase of $503.0 million of surplus notes issued by BAM (the “BAM Surplus Notes”). As of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, White Mountains owned 96.9% of HG Global’s preferred equity and 88.4% of its common equity.
White Mountains does not have an ownership interest in BAM. However, through June 30, 2024, White Mountains was required to consolidate BAM’s results in its financial statements because BAM is a variable interest entity (“VIE”) for which White Mountains was the primary beneficiary. BAM’s results were all attributed to noncontrolling interests. On July 1, 2024, HG Re and BAM amended the terms of the first-loss reinsurance treaty (“FLRT”) with respect to certain governance rights held by HG Re. As a result, and in combination with other governance changes at BAM, White Mountains concluded that it no longer has the power to direct BAM’s activities that most significantly impact its economic performance and is no longer BAM’s primary beneficiary. Accordingly, effective July 1, 2024, White Mountains no longer consolidates BAM. Through June 30, 2024, BAM’s results of operations were presented within the HG Global segment. See Note 2 — “Significant Transactions.”
The Kudu segment consists of Kudu Investment Management, LLC and its subsidiaries (collectively, “Kudu”). Kudu provides capital solutions for boutique asset and wealth managers for a variety of purposes including generational ownership transfers, management buyouts, acquisition and growth finance and legacy partner liquidity. Kudu also provides strategic advice to managers from time to time. Kudu’s capital solutions generally are structured as noncontrolling equity interests in the form of revenue and earnings participation contracts (“Participation Contracts”) and designed to generate immediate cash yields. As of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, White Mountains owned 91.2% and 90.4% of Kudu’s basic units outstanding (77.9% and 77.0% on a fully-diluted/fully-converted basis, taking account of management’s equity incentives).
The Bamboo segment consists of PM Holdings LLC (“Bamboo Holdings”), Bamboo Ide8 Insurance Services LLC (“Bamboo MGA”) and Ide8 Re, Inc. (the “Bamboo Captive”) (collectively with Bamboo Holdings and Bamboo MGA, “Bamboo”). Bamboo is a capital-light, tech- and data-enabled insurance distribution platform providing homeowners’ insurance and related products to the residential property market in California. Bamboo operates primarily through Bamboo MGA, its full-service managing general agent (“MGA”) business, where the company manages all aspects of the placement process on behalf of its fronting and reinsurance carrier partners (“Capacity Providers”), including product development, marketing, underwriting, policy issuance and claims oversight, and it earns commissions based on the volume and profitability of the insurance that it places. Bamboo MGA offers both admitted and non-admitted products. Under its capacity agreements, Bamboo MGA’s commission levels are based on a sliding scale tied primarily to its attritional loss ratio. Bamboo also operates two separate but integrated businesses: (i) a retail agency, within Bamboo MGA, offering ancillary products (e.g., flood, earthquake) on behalf of third parties and (ii) the Bamboo Captive, a U.S.-domiciled captive reinsurer that participates in the underwriting risk of Bamboo’s MGA programs to align interests with Capacity Providers. As of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, White Mountains owned 72.8% of Bamboo’s basic units outstanding (63.7% on a fully-diluted/fully-converted basis, taking account of management’s equity incentives).
On October 2, 2025, White Mountains entered into an agreement to sell a controlling financial interest in Bamboo and its parent, WM Pierce Holdings, Inc. (collectively, the “Bamboo Group”). See Note 2 — “Significant Transactions.” As a result, the Bamboo Group’s assets and liabilities have been presented as held for sale in White Mountains’s consolidated balance sheets as of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024. See Note 19 — “Held for Sale.”
The Distinguished segment consists of WM Phoenix Holdings L.P. and its subsidiaries d/b/a Distinguished Programs (collectively, “Distinguished”). Distinguished is a full-service MGA and program administrator for specialty property and casualty insurance. Distinguished places insurance across a diversified portfolio of programs broadly grouped into two verticals. The ScaleCo vertical consists of established programs, primarily focused on real estate and hospitality end markets. The GrowthCo vertical consists of start-up programs, focused on a diversified set of specialty property and casualty insurance products across multiple industries. On behalf of its insurance carrier partners, Distinguished typically manages all aspects of the placement process, including product development, marketing, underwriting and policy issuance. Distinguished earns commissions based on the volume and profitability of the insurance that it places. Distinguished does not retain insurance risk. On September 2, 2025, White Mountains acquired a controlling financial interest in Distinguished. See Note 2 — “Significant Transactions.” As of September 30, 2025, White Mountains owned 55.5% of Distinguished on a basic units outstanding basis (43.6% on a fully-diluted/fully-converted basis, taking account of management’s equity incentives).
White Mountains’s other operations consist of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiary, White Mountains Capital, LLC (“WM Capital”), its other intermediate holding companies, its wholly-owned investment management subsidiary, White Mountains Advisors LLC (“WM Advisors”), investment assets managed by WM Advisors, its interests in MediaAlpha, Inc. (“MediaAlpha”), DavidShield PassportCard Ltd. and its subsidiaries (collectively, “PassportCard/DavidShield”), Elementum Holdings LP (“Elementum”), White Mountains Partners LLC (“WTM Partners”), Enterprise Electric, LLC d/b/a Enterprise Solutions (“Enterprise Solutions”), a Bermuda special purpose collateralized reinsurance vehicle that provides reinsurance capacity to Bamboo (the “Bamboo CRV”), certain other consolidated and unconsolidated entities (“Other Operating Businesses”) and certain other assets (collectively, “Other Operations”). On July 18, 2025, White Mountains deployed $150 million into BroadStreet Partners, Inc. (“BroadStreet”) through a special purpose vehicle (the “BroadStreet SPV”). See Note 2 — “Significant Transactions.” White Mountains’s investment in the BroadStreet SPV is presented within Other Operations.
Revenue Recognition
Revenue Recognition
Distinguished’s revenues consist primarily of commission and fee revenues related to its placement of insurance policies. Commission revenues are measured based on the contractual rates with its insurance carriers, net of any amounts expected to be uncollectible and any amounts associated with expected policy cancellations and adjustments, and are recognized when contractual performance obligations have been fulfilled. Distinguished also earns fee revenues, primarily related to risk management services provided to certain insureds, which are recognized when contractual performance obligations have been fulfilled. Distinguished’s primary contractual performance obligations are generally satisfied upon the issuance of an insurance policy.
Distinguished’s premiums, commissions and fees receivable consist of insurance premiums and fees receivable from insureds and commissions receivable from insurance carriers, net of a provision for amounts estimated to be uncollectible and any amounts associated with expected policy cancellations and adjustments. Premiums receivable are collected on behalf of Distinguished’s insurance carriers. Distinguished’s premiums and commissions payable consist of insurance premiums payable to insurance carriers and commissions payable to sub-agents and brokers.
Broker Commission Expenses
Broker Commission Expenses
Distinguished’s broker commission expenses consist of commissions paid to sub-agents and brokers. Broker commission expense is measured in accordance with contractual terms and recognized when incurred, which is generally at the policy issuance date.
Noncontrolling Interests
Noncontrolling Interests
Noncontrolling interests consist of the ownership interests of noncontrolling shareholders in consolidated entities. White Mountains has both redeemable and nonredeemable noncontrolling interests. Noncontrolling interests with redemption features that are not within White Mountains’s control are classified as redeemable noncontrolling interests, which are considered temporary equity and presented as mezzanine equity on the balance sheet. Redeemable noncontrolling interests are excluded from White Mountains’s total equity. The redeemable noncontrolling interests relate to Distinguished. Noncontrolling interests that do not have any redemption features are classified as nonredeemable noncontrolling interests, which are considered permanent equity and included in White Mountains’s total equity on the balance sheet. Nonredeemable noncontrolling interests are presented separately from White Mountains’s common shareholders’ equity. See Note 13 — “Noncontrolling Interests.”
Comprehensive income (loss) is attributable to both redeemable and nonredeemable noncontrolling interests, which is presented net of related income taxes in the statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss). In addition, White Mountains recognizes an adjustment to the carrying value of the redeemable noncontrolling interests each quarter to the extent the carrying value is below the redemption value, as applicable. The adjustment for redeemable noncontrolling interests is recognized through White Mountains’s common shareholders’ equity. When calculating basic and diluted earnings per share, the adjustment for redeemable noncontrolling interests is treated as being akin to a dividend and presented as adjustment to net income (loss) attributable to White Mountains’s common shareholders.