Aegon was founded in 1983 from the merger of AGO Holding N.V. and Ennia N.V.. Aegon acquired Scottish Equitable in 1994. In 1998 it formed Stonebridge International Insurance Ltd to create and market a range of personal insurance products, providing accident, health and unemployment cover to its own customers and via business partners. In 1999 it acquired the life assurance business of Guardian Royal Exchange. That year it also bought Transamerica Corporation. On August 13, 2007, Aegon and Merrill Lynch announced a strategic business partnership in the areas of life insurance and investment products. As part of the relationship, Aegon acquired two of Merrill Lynch's life insurance companies for US$1.3 billion. On April 23, 2008, Alex Wynaendts succeeded the retiring Donald J. Shepard as chairman of the executive board and CEO of Aegon N.V. following the group's annual general meeting of shareholders: Donald Shepard announced his retirement in November 2007, after six years as chairman. On October 28, 2008, the Dutch government and De Nederlandsche Bank agreed to give Aegon a €3 billion capital injection to create a capital buffer in exchange for convertible bonds to ease the group through the financial crisis. On June 15, 2011, Aegon fulfilled its key objective of repurchasing all of the €3 billion core capital securities issued to the Dutch State. The total amount Aegon has paid to the Dutch State amounts to €4.1 billion. Of this amount, €3 billion covered the original issue of core capital securities, while an additional €1.1 billion was paid in premium and interest. On August 3, 2011, Aegon USA announced that all its various businesses will be grouped under a single brand name: Transamerica. Transamerica's key businesses are life insurance, investments and retirement. The group includes companies whose history goes back over 100 years and whose products and services have become well known throughout the US, including founding companies Life Investors Insurance Company of America and Monumental Life Insurance Company. On 15 May 2020, Lard Friese succeeded Alex Wynaendts as the CEO of Aegon N.V..
AEGON also operates a direct bank under the brand name "Knab" in the Netherlands. Soon after it was founded in 2012 the bank came under criticism for having the highest cost for any transaction account compared to other Dutch banks. Knab responded by saying that other banks hid many of its costs in other products.
Sponsorships
In 2008, Aegon became the official sponsor of the Dutch football teamAFC Ajax, in a deal which lasted for seven years. Ajax's uniform featured the Aegon logo across the chest. Aegon became the third sponsor of Ajax. As of late 2008, Aegon also sponsor the Lawn Tennis Association. A sponsorship package was agreed with the LTA and Aegon's name will appear on all four pillars of British Tennis, including many professional tournaments, one of which is the AEGON Championships, an ATP grasscourt professional tennis tournament in June in London, taking over from Stella Artois, who had sponsored the event since 1979. Since 2004, Transamerica has been the primary sponsor of the American golfer Zach Johnson. AEGON is one of the strategic industry partners with Duisenberg school of finance.
Headquarters office
The headquarters office of Aegon is located in The Hague and designed by OTH Architects. Initially AEGON wanted to redesign only the conference rooms, but while working on it they decided to improve and redesign the full building. The office spaces, the main hall and the restaurant were redesigned. The new design has a lot of glass like glass walls manufactured by SI-X. The restaurant has a main helical staircase with a full glass balustrade manufactured by Eestairs and did win the prize for the best staircase of the year in 2008. In 2009 Aegon decided to buy this building from real estate fund Unibail-Rodamco and keep the building as their headquarters.
Criticism
In June 2018 AEGON was criticized by environmental organizations for its investments in tar sands oil companies and pipelines. Aegon reacted by stating that it was developing a new policy with regards to the oil and gas sector.
