M&A in brief

Aon Corp. is acquiring Hewitt Associates Inc. for $4.9 billion, with both Chicago-based companies having offices in Fairfield County.

Both companies consult on human resources and benefits while taking on some HR functions on an outsourced basis. Combined, Aon and Hewitt have $4.3 billion in annual revenue and 29,000 employees.

The companies expect the merger to produce $355 million in annual savings by 2013, primarily from reduction in back-office costs, management overlap, and combined technology platforms.

Aon has offices in Greenwich, Stamford, Darien, and Southport; Hewitt Associates has a large office in Norwalk.

GENERAL ELECTRIC
For $1.9 billion, General Electric Co. is selling BAC Credomatic GECF Inc. to Grupo Aval, the largest bank company in Colombia.

“This is a good deal for GE, and furthers our objective of reducing the overall size of GE Capital,” said Dmitri Stockton, CEO of GE Capital Global Banking, in a prepared statement.

GE acquired the unit five years ago. Founded in 1952, BAC International Bank has operations in Mexico and a half-dozen other nations in Central America, with approximately $5.5 billion in deposits.