THE HAGUE, the Netherlands,
February 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --
- Underlying earnings before tax amount
to EUR 486 million
- Underlying earnings impacted by lower earnings in US
- Net income increases to EUR 478
million, driven by net recoveries and lower fair value
losses
- Return on equity of 8.3%
- Record sales driven by fee-based
deposit businesses
- Strong growth in asset management drives gross deposits up 63%
to EUR 22.3 billion; net deposits
increase to EUR 2.8 billion
- New life insurance sales decline 16% to EUR 440 million driven by all markets
- Accident & health and general insurance sales up 5% to
EUR 238 million
- Market consistent value of new business of EUR 149 million impacted by low interest
rates
- Returning capital to shareholders
- Operational free cash flows excluding market impacts and
one-time items of EUR 377
million
- Holding excess capital of EUR 1.4
billion and a gross leverage ratio of 27.0%
- Solvency II ratio per year-end 2015 at ~160% and final 2015
dividend increase to EUR 0.13
reaffirmed
- EUR 400 million share buyback
program on track - repurchased EUR 101
million since program start
Statement of Alex Wynaendts, CEO
"Aegon's fourth quarter results close a year in which we
achieved record sales and accomplished many of our strategic
objectives, although expectations for underlying earnings were not
met in all of our businesses. The strong growth in
revenue-generating assets this quarter, which now exceed
700 billion euros for the first time,
reflects our focus to further expand our fee businesses.
"I am proud of the excellent work our dedicated employees do for
Aegon's 30 million customers worldwide. In order to get even closer
to our customers, and become a more agile and efficient
organization, we are accelerating our digital transformation. One
of our key financial ambitions is to reduce costs, and we are well
on track to realize savings - particularly in the US.
"The recent market volatility, fuelled by uncertainty about
economic growth, once again demonstrates the challenging
environment in which we operate. I'm pleased that our strong
capital position enables us to return capital to shareholders
through an increased final dividend and a share buyback program.
"Looking ahead, by successfully executing on our strategy we
will be able to deliver on our purpose and help many more people
achieve a lifetime of financial security, in addition to generating
long-term value for all our stakeholders."
Key performance indicators
amounts in EUR
millions b) Notes Q4 2015 Q3 2015 % Q4 2014 % FY 2015 FY 2014 %
Underlying earnings
before tax 1 486 436 11 562 (14) 1,939 1,865 4
Net income / (loss) 478 (524) - 399 20 619 1,186 (48)
Sales 2 2,913 2,604 12 2,117 38 10,708 8,602 24
Market consistent value of
new business 3 149 125 19 196 (24) 597 832 (28)
Return on equity 4 8.3% 6.8% 22 9.7% (14) 7.5% 7.8% (4)
STRATEGIC HIGHLIGHTS
- Strategy update and financial targets for 2018 presented at
recent investor day
- Dutch commercial line non-life business sold to
Allianz
- Center of Excellence for Digital launched to share expertise
across the organization
- Aegon N.V. and Aegon Bank N.V. announce that
the Netherlands is
their Home Member State for purposes of the EU
Transparency Directive
Strategy update
In January, Aegon provided the market with a strategy update and
2018 financial targets at its Analyst & Investor Conference in
London, which included the
announcement of a number of significant measures to improve
operational performance. The company is targeting a group return on
equity of 10% by 2018, which is supported by:
- Reducing annual operating expenses by EUR 200 million by the end of 2018
- Additional investments in digital capabilities and expertise of
EUR 50 million per annum above the
current level to further support the organic growth of the
business
Aegon's solid capital position and free cash flow generation
provide the foundation to accelerate capital returns to
shareholders. The main announcements on Aegon's ambitions for
capital and cashflow for the 2016-2018 period were:
- Group Solvency II ratio as of December
31, 2015, of ~160%
- Regulatory approval received to use the partial internal model
to calculate Solvency II capital
- Cumulative free cash flows after holding expenses of
EUR 3.3 billion until 2018. Dutch and
UK operations expected to resume dividend payments in 2016 and 2017
respectively
- Capital returns to shareholders of over EUR 2 billion in the period 2016-2018
- Dividend pay-out ratio of 50% of free cash flows
- EUR 400 million share
buyback
- Proposal to increase the 2015 final dividend per share to
EUR 0.13, bringing the total 2015
dividend per share to EUR 0.25, a 9%
increase over the 2014 dividend
Aegon's ambition is to be a trusted partner for financial
solutions at every stage of life, and to be recognized by its
customers, business partners and society as a company that puts the
interests of its customers first in everything it does. In
addition, Aegon wants to be regarded by its employees as an
employer of choice, engaging and enabling them to succeed. This
ambition is supported by four strategic objectives embedded in all
Aegon businesses: Optimized portfolio, Operational excellence,
Customer loyalty, and Empowered employees.
Optimized portfolio
In January, Aegon announced the sale to Allianz of its Dutch
commercial line non-life business, which includes its proxy and
co-insurance run-off portfolios. The transaction is expected to
close in the third quarter of 2016, and follows the announcement
last year that these activities are no longer strategically core to
the company's non-life business. Aegon will continue to invest in
income protection and retail non-life insurance.
Transamerica completed the acquisition of Mercer's US defined
contribution (DC) record-keeping business on December 31, 2015. In addition, as part of an
ongoing partnership with Mercer, Transamerica is now the preferred
DC administration provider for Mercer's total benefit and total
retirement outsourcing offerings. Transamerica has become a top 10
defined contribution plan provider, helping 4.7 million
participants save and invest for their retirement.
On December 7, 2015, Aegon
increased its stake in its Indian joint venture Aegon Life, a
leader in the online life insurance market in India, from 26% to 49%. This follows last
year's revision to India's
insurance laws that enables foreign companies to own up to 49% of
an Indian insurance company. Aegon Life's innovative internet
platform provides customers with a convenient and valuable option
to research, review and purchase online protection and savings
products.
On February 16, Aegon signed an
agreement with the Czech online comparison website Chytry Honza. In
line with one of Aegon's strategic priorities to increase its
digital capabilities and expertise, the business partnership will
focus on digital services for customers who seek an independent
comparison of insurance products. Aegon will leverage on Chytry
Honza's online technological platform capabilities, multi-channel
financial product distribution and digital know-how.
Operational excellence
In line with Aegon's strategy to increase operational
efficiency, Aegon will insource the administration of its new
Premie Pensioen Instelling (PPI) product in
the Netherlands to its defined
contribution administration subsidiary TKP. By using TKP's
platform, Aegon will be able to offer its customers a higher level
of service and the opportunity to use the latest technology, while
at the same time also benefiting from TKP's scale. TKP is expected
to administer the entire PPI portfolio by the end of 2016.
Customer loyalty
To help people achieve a lifetime of financial security and to
meet the strong demand for guidance, Aegon has launched 'Aegon
Assist' in the UK, a free information and guidance service. This
service is for customers who do not have a financial adviser, but
want information about their Aegon products. In the rapidly
changing retirement landscape, where people are required to make
decisions regarding options that did not exist just months ago,
many people are unwilling to pay for financial advice. While Aegon
will continue to recommend seeking advice, Aegon Assist can be an
important additional option for customers to get the information
they need to make the right decisions.
In January, Aegon launched a Center of Excellence for Digital in
order to become more agile and more effective, leading to a higher
level of service and a better customer experience. The center is
dedicated to sharing best practices and delivering digital
expertise across the business units in Asia, Central & Eastern Europe, the
Netherlands and Spain &
Portugal. The center will provide
experts for digital projects that are being executed in the
different regions. In addition, it will initiate projects that will
be reusable in multiple country units and fill a common need.
Underlining Aegon's capabilities as a customer-centric
organization, Aegon's online bank Knab, won the Opiness award for
providing the 'best service' in the category 'banks'. Opiness is a
widely-respected, independent review platform in the Netherlands, and its annual awards are
presented to companies that provide an excellent level of customer
service.
Empowered employees
In the US, Transamerica scored 90 out of 100 in the 2016
Corporate Equality Index (CEI) rating. The rating reinforces
Aegon's commitment to workplace equality, an important benchmark
for customers when deciding where to buy financial products, as
well as another important step in becoming a preferred employer in
the sector.
Results from Aegon's fifth annual global employee survey place
Aegon above the industry norm for the financial services sector.
Employee enablement has increased 1 point in 2015 and reached 75
points, which exceeds the industry norm as well as the high
performing norm with 7 and 4 points respectively. Employee
engagement shows a slight decrease to 71 points, which is still
above the industry norm and up 8 points since the first survey in
2011. 82% of all Aegon employees worldwide participated in the
survey. This demonstrates the success of Aegon's ongoing work to
become the most preferred employer in the sector, which allows
Aegon to attract and develop the talent required to best service
the needs of its customers.
Responsible business
As part of Aegon's commitment to a sustainable future, Aegon
Asset Management has invested EUR 45
million in a German offshore wind farm. This investment will
help facilitate the transition to a low carbon economy and fits
with Aegon's sustainability remit, while also promising an
attractive risk/return over a relatively short period. Aegon Asset
Management worked together with its French joint venture partner La
Banque Postale Asset Management in the project, which invested a
further EUR 25 million.
Financial overview
EUR millions Notes Q4 Q3 % Q4 % FY FY %
2015 2015 2014 2015 2014
Underlying earnings
before tax
Americas 310 243 28 367 (15) 1,200 1,134 6
The Netherlands 135 135 - 172 (21) 537 558 (4)
United Kingdom 26 27 (4) 29 (9) 125 115 9
New Markets 54 69 (23) 33 61 236 196 20
Holding and other (39) (38) (3) (39) (2) (161) (138) (17)
Underlying earnings
before tax 486 436 11 562 (14) 1,939 1,865 4
Fair value items (65) (103) 36 (132) 51 (620) (807) 23
Realized gains /
(losses) on investments 58 36 63 304 (81) 346 697 (50)
Net impairments 64 (12) - (28) - 49 (34) -
Other income /
(charges) (19) (950) 98 (191) 90 (980) (240) -
Run-off businesses 14 28 (50) (3) - 52 (21) -
Income before tax 537 (565) - 511 5 786 1,458 (46)
Income tax (60) 41 - (112) 47 (167) (272) 39
Net income / (loss) 478 (524) - 399 20 619 1,186 (48)
Net income / (loss)
attributable to:
Equity holders of
Aegon N.V. 477 (524) - 399 20 619 1,186 (48)
Non-controlling
interests - - 174 - (5) 1 1 58
Net underlying
earnings 420 355 18 429 (2) 1,552 1,416 10
Commissions and
expenses 1,818 1,510 20 1,596 14 6,802 5,892 15
of which operating
expenses 9 997 912 9 897 11 3,734 3,312 13
New life sales
Life single premiums 930 1,165 (20) 1,481 (37) 4,578 5,596 (18)
Life recurring premiums
annualized 347 319 9 374 (7) 1,486 1,485 -
Total recurring plus
1/10 single 440 435 1 523 (16) 1,944 2,045 (5)
New life sales
Americas 10 152 148 3 169 (10) 599 552 9
The Netherlands 43 24 77 82 (47) 130 251 (48)
United Kingdom 186 194 (4) 194 (4) 911 972 (6)
New Markets 10 59 68 (13) 76 (23) 304 271 12
Total recurring plus
1/10 single 440 435 1 523 (16) 1,944 2,045 (5)
New premium production
accident and health
insurance 213 212 1 205 4 960 942 2
New premium production
general insurance 25 18 39 21 17 84 72 17
Gross deposits (on and
off balance)
Americas 10 8,511 7,868 8 7,764 10 36,999 31,849 16
The Netherlands 1,459 1,000 46 989 48 5,137 2,781 85
United Kingdom 68 71 (3) 67 1 307 281 9
New Markets 10 12,311 10,455 18 4,864 153 34,761 20,519 69
Total gross deposits 22,350 19,394 15 13,684 63 77,205 55,431 39
Net deposits (on and
off balance)
Americas 10 726 711 2 (314) - 7,754 5,358 45
The Netherlands 504 230 119 484 4 1,885 1,131 67
United Kingdom 40 39 3 34 20 176 156 13
New Markets 10 1,767 3,564 (50) 591 199 8,581 3,296 160
Total net deposits
excluding run-off
businesses 3,038 4,544 (33) 794 - 18,396 9,941 85
Run-off businesses (215) (294) 27 (170) (27) (833) (1,217) 32
Total net deposits /
(outflows) 2,823 4,250 (34) 625 - 17,563 8,724 101
Revenue-generating investments
Dec. 31, Sep. 30, Dec. 31,
2015 2015 % 2014 %
Revenue-generating investments (total) 707,390 635,458 11 558,328 27
Investments general account 160,792 160,830 - 153,653 5
Investments for account of policyholders 200,226 193,562 3 191,467 5
Off balance sheet investments third parties 346,371 281,066 23 213,208 62
OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
Underlying earnings before tax
Aegon's underlying earnings before tax in the fourth quarter of
2015 declined to EUR 486 million.
Favorable currency movements and the positive impact of growth in
New Markets were more than offset by lower earnings in the other
business units. This was mainly related to the reduction in
recurring earnings resulting from the assumption changes and model
updates implemented in the United
States and Asia in the
third quarter of 2015, lower earnings from fixed and variable
annuities and retirement plans in the
United States and adverse one-time items. One-time items had
a negative impact of EUR 11 million
and a positive impact of EUR 48
million in the fourth quarter of 2015 and 2014,
respectively.
Underlying earnings from the Americas were down to EUR 310 million. The positive impact on earnings
from the stronger US dollar was more than offset by the recurring
impact of the actuarial assumption changes and model updates
implemented in the third quarter of 2015, lower annuity and
retirement plan earnings, adverse one-time items of EUR 22 million and the divestment of Canada.
In the Netherlands, underlying
earnings declined to EUR 135 million,
as the fourth quarter of 2014 included a reserve release related to
a new employee pension arrangement of EUR 45
million. On a comparable basis, underlying earnings
increased 7%, as lower funding costs and a mortality provision
release more than offset lower non-life results.
Underlying earnings from Aegon's operations in the United Kingdom amounted to EUR 26 million. Favorable currency movements were
more than offset by adverse market movements and lower investment
income due to selective de-risking of the investment portfolio to
improve the capital position under Solvency II.
Underlying earnings from New Markets were up 61% to EUR 54 million. This increase was the result of
higher earnings in Central & Eastern
Europe, Asia and Aegon
Asset Management, which were partly offset by higher expenses in
Variable Annuities Europe.
Total holding costs were stable at EUR 39
million, and included a currency gain of EUR 3 million.
Net income
Net income increased to EUR 478
million, as improved Other charges, an improved result on
fair value items, higher recoveries and lower taxes more than
offset a decline in underlying earnings before tax and lower
realized gains.
Fair value items
The loss from fair value items was EUR 65
million, which was mainly driven by the macro equity hedge
program due to higher equity markets, and alternative investments
in the United States. This was
partly offset by gains on interest rate hedge programs with an
accounting match in the United
States, which benefited from the widening of the spread
between the swap and treasury curves.
Realized gains on investments
Realized gains on investments amounted to EUR 58 million and were mainly the result of
divesting part of the corporate bond portfolio to reinvest in
private placements in the
Netherlands, together with adjustments to the investment
portfolio in the United Kingdom to
ensure a successful matching adjustment application for Solvency
II.
Impairment charges
Net recoveries were EUR 64 million
for the quarter, which included a legal settlement on previously
impaired structured assets of EUR 78
million, while gross impairments remained very low.
Other charges
Other charges amounted to EUR 19
million, as a restructuring provision of EUR 36 million in the
United States related to the announced cost savings over the
2016-2018 period was partly offset by a net gain of EUR 16 million related to the joint venture with
Liberbank.
Run-off businesses
Earnings from run-off businesses improved to EUR 14 million.
Income tax
Income tax amounted to EUR 60 million
in the fourth quarter. The effective tax rate on underlying
earnings was 13%, and 11% for total income, which was mostly driven
by tax benefits related to solar investments in the United States and a reduction of the
corporate tax rate in the United
Kingdom.
Return on equity
Return on equity was 8.3% in the fourth quarter of 2015.
Operating expenses
In the fourth quarter, operating expenses increased 11% to
EUR 997 million, or 3% at constant
currencies. The non-recurrence of a defined benefit plan release in
the Netherlands more than offset
lower business transformation costs in the United Kingdom and lower expenses in
the United States.
Sales
Aegon's total sales increased 38% to EUR 2.9
billion in the fourth quarter of 2015, due to a stronger US
dollar, higher asset management deposits and increased indexed
universal life sales. Gross deposits increased 63% to EUR 22.3 billion, driven by higher deposits in
Aegon Asset Management and strong growth in bank deposits in
the Netherlands. Net deposits,
excluding run-off businesses, increased to EUR 3.0 billion as a result of higher net inflows
in Aegon Asset Management. New life sales declined 16% to
EUR 440 million, as higher indexed
universal life sales in the United
States and favorable currency movements were more than
offset by the impact of the withdrawal of the universal life
secondary guarantee product in the United
States and lower pension sales in the Netherlands and United Kingdom. New premium production for
accident & health and general insurance increased 5% to
EUR 238 million, as the effect of a
stronger US dollar and higher health sales in Spain through Aegon's own and direct channels
more than offset the impact of product exits in the United States.
Market consistent value of new business
The market consistent value of new business amounted to
EUR 149 million. The positive effect
of the stronger US dollar and product adjustments in the United States was more than offset by the
negative impact of lower life sales and interest rates.
Revenue-generating investments
Revenue-generating investments increased by 11% during the fourth
quarter of 2015 to EUR 707 billion.
This was mainly due to the acquisition of Mercer's defined
contribution record-keeping business and net inflows.
Capital management
Shareholders' equity declined by EUR 0.2
billion compared with the end of the previous quarter to
EUR 23.9 billion on December 31, 2015. Revaluation reserves declined
by EUR 0.9 billion to EUR 6.5 billion. Aegon's shareholders' equity,
excluding revaluation reserves and defined benefit plan
remeasurements, increased to EUR 19.0
billion - or EUR 8.97 per
common share - at the end of the fourth quarter. This was the
result of the net income generated in the quarter and favorable
currency movements.
The gross leverage ratio improved to 27.0% in the fourth
quarter, driven by the redemption of the USD
500 million 4.625% senior bond in December and the earnings
generated in the quarter. Excess capital in the holding declined to
EUR 1.4 billion. Dividends of
EUR 0.3 billion paid to the holding
by the United States and Central
& Eastern Europe were more
than offset by the redemption of the senior bond, capital
injections, interest payments and holding operating expenses.
Aegon's Insurance Group Directive (IGD) solvency
ratio[(a)] declined to 220% in the
fourth quarter. The RBC ratio in the
United States declined to ~460%, primarily due to asset
adequacy reserve increases resulting from lower interest rates, and
a dividend payment to the holding. In the
Netherlands, the IGD ratio, excluding Aegon Bank, declined
to ~240%, driven by credit and interest rate movements. The Pillar
I ratio in the United Kingdom,
including the with-profit fund, increased to ~165%, due to revised
longevity assumptions following the completion of new experience
studies. As of the first quarter of 2016, Aegon will discontinue
reporting its capital position on a Solvency I basis and start
reporting under Solvency II. Its estimated Solvency II ratio was
approximately 160% at year-end 2015.
Cash flows
Operational free cash flows[(11)]
amounted to EUR 22 million in the
fourth quarter of 2015, driven by adverse market impacts and
one-time items. Operational free cash flows excluding market
impacts and one-time items amounted to EUR
377 million for the quarter. The charges from one-time items
of EUR 80 million included asset
adequacy reserve increases and a benefit related to changes in
longevity assumptions in the UK. Market impacts amounted to
EUR 275 million, mainly driven by
credit and interest rate movements in the
Netherlands.
Accounting changes
As communicated on January 13, 2016,
Aegon will implement voluntary changes in its accounting policies,
effective January 1, 2016, to reflect
its updated strategic priorities. Additional details on the
accounting changes, including the estimated financial impacts upon
adoption, can be found in the Q4 2015 Condensed Consolidated
Interim Financial Statements.
Share buyback
On January 13, 2016, Aegon announced
and started its EUR 400 million share
buyback program to neutralize the dilutive effect of the
cancellation of the preferred shares in 2013. The first tranche of
EUR 200 million will be repurchased
before March 31, 2016.
As of February 17, 2016, Aegon has
repurchased 20.5 million shares, with a total value of EUR 101 million. This represents an average
repurchase price of EUR 4.90 per
share. It will be proposed to shareholders at Aegon's next Annual
General Meeting on May 20, 2016, to
cancel any repurchased shares under this program. Weekly updates
regarding the transactions will be available on
aegon.com/sharebuyback.
Final dividend
At the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders on May 20, 2016, the Supervisory Board will, absent
unforeseen circumstances, propose a final dividend for 2015 of
EUR 0.13 per common share. If
approved, and in combination with the interim dividend of
EUR 0.12 per share paid over the
first half of 2015, Aegon's total dividend over 2015 will amount to
EUR 0.25 per common share. The final
dividend will be paid in cash or stock at the election of the
shareholder. The value of the stock dividend will be approximately
equal to the cash dividend.
Aegon's Euronext-listed shares will be quoted ex-dividend on
May 24, 2016, while its NYSE-listed
shares will be quoted ex-dividend on May 23,
2016. The record date for both shares is May 25, 2016. The election period for
shareholders will run from May 31 up
to and including June 17, 2016. The
stock fraction will be based on the average share price on Euronext
Amsterdam from June 13 until
June 17, 2016. The stock dividend
ratio will be announced on June 22,
2016, and the dividend will be payable as of June 24, 2016.
Financial overview, Q4 2015 geographically
Holding,
other
The United New activities &
EUR millions Americas Netherlands Kingdom Markets eliminations Total
Underlying earnings before
tax by line of business
Life 85 83 19 4 - 191
Individual savings and
retirement products 153 - - (4) - 149
Pensions 72 57 7 2 - 138
Non-life - (13) - 14 - 1
Asset Management - - - 38 - 38
Other - 8 - - (39) (31)
Underlying earnings before
tax 310 135 26 54 (39) 486
Fair value items (64) 22 (31) 9 (1) (65)
Realized gains / (losses)
on investments (22) 33 38 10 - 58
Net impairments 72 (7) - (1) - 64
Other income / (charges) (29) - 14 (4) - (19)
Run-off businesses 14 - - - - 14
Income before tax 281 183 46 67 (41) 537
Income tax (37) (43) 17 (17) 20 (60)
Net income / (loss) 244 140 63 51 (20) 478
Net underlying earnings 250 107 58 32 (28) 420
Employee numbers
Dec. 31, Sep. 30, Dec. 31,
2015 2015 2014
Employees 31,530 28,675 28,602
of which agents 8,433 5,642 5,713
of which Aegon's share of
employees in joint ventures
and associates 1,983 1,694 1,614
Use this link for the full version of the press release.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The Hague -
February 19, 2016
Presentation
The conference call presentation is available on aegon.com as of
7.30 a.m. CET.
Supplements
Aegon's Q4 2015 Financial Supplement and Condensed Consolidated
Interim Financial Statements
are available on aegon.com.
Conference call including Q&A
9:00 a.m. CET
Audio webcast on aegon.com
Dial-in numbers
United States: +1-212-444-0896
United Kingdom:
+44(0)20-3427-1910
The Netherlands:
+31(0)20-716-8257
Passcode: 7503394
Two hours after the conference call, a replay will be available
on aegon.com
DISCLAIMERS
Cautionary note regarding non-IFRS measures
This document includes the following non-IFRS financial
measures: underlying earnings before tax, income tax, income before
tax and market consistent value of new business. These non-IFRS
measures are calculated by consolidating on a proportionate basis
Aegon's joint ventures and associated companies. The reconciliation
of these measures, except for market consistent value of new
business, to the most comparable IFRS measure is provided in note 3
'Segment information' of Aegon's Condensed Consolidated Interim
Financial Statements. Market consistent value of new business is
not based on IFRS, which are used to report Aegon's primary
financial statements and should not be viewed as a substitute for
IFRS financial measures. Aegon may define and calculate market
consistent value of new business differently than other companies.
Aegon believes that these non-IFRS measures, together with the IFRS
information, provide meaningful information about the underlying
operating results of Aegon's business including insight into the
financial measures that senior management uses in managing the
business. In addition, return on equity is a ratio using a non-IFRS
measure and is calculated by dividing the net underlying earnings
after cost of leverage by the average shareholders' equity
excluding the preferred shares, the revaluation reserve and the
reserves related to defined benefit plans.
Local currencies and constant currency exchange
rates
This document contains certain information about Aegon's
results, financial condition and revenue generating investments
presented in USD for the Americas and GBP for the United Kingdom, because those businesses
operate and are managed primarily in those currencies. Certain
comparative information presented on a constant currency basis
eliminates the effects of changes in currency exchange rates. None
of this information is a substitute for or superior to financial
information about Aegon presented in EUR, which is the currency of
Aegon's primary financial statements.
Forward-looking statements
The statements contained in this document that are not
historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the
US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The following
are words that identify such forward-looking statements: aim,
believe, estimate, target, intend, may, expect, anticipate,
predict, project, counting on, plan, continue, want, forecast,
goal, should, would, is confident, will, and similar expressions as
they relate to Aegon. These statements are not guarantees of future
performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that
are difficult to predict. Aegon undertakes no obligation to
publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. Readers
are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements, which merely reflect company expectations at the time
of writing. Actual results may differ materially from expectations
conveyed in forward-looking statements due to changes caused by
various risks and uncertainties. Such risks and uncertainties
include but are not limited to the following:
- Changes in general economic conditions, particularly in
the United States, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom;
- Changes in the performance of financial markets, including
emerging markets, such as with regard to:
- The frequency and severity of defaults by issuers in Aegon's
fixed income investment portfolios;
- The effects of corporate bankruptcies and/or accounting
restatements on the financial markets and the resulting decline in
the value of equity and debt securities Aegon holds; and
- The effects of declining creditworthiness of certain private
sector securities and the resulting decline in the value of
sovereign exposure that Aegon holds;
- Changes in the performance of Aegon's investment portfolio and
decline in ratings of Aegon's counterparties;
- Consequences of a potential (partial) break-up of the euro or
the potential exit of the United
Kingdom from the European Union;
- The frequency and severity of insured loss events;
- Changes affecting longevity, mortality, morbidity, persistence
and other factors that may impact the profitability of Aegon's
insurance products;
- Reinsurers to whom Aegon has ceded significant underwriting
risks may fail to meet their obligations;
- Changes affecting interest rate levels and continuing low or
rapidly changing interest rate levels;
- Changes affecting currency exchange rates, in particular the
EUR/USD and EUR/GBP exchange rates;
- Changes in the availability of, and costs associated with,
liquidity sources such as bank and capital markets funding, as well
as conditions in the credit markets in general such as changes in
borrower and counterparty creditworthiness;
- Increasing levels of competition in the United States, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and emerging markets;
- Changes in laws and regulations, particularly those affecting
Aegon's operations' ability to hire and retain key personnel, the
products Aegon sells, and the attractiveness of certain products to
its consumers;
- Regulatory changes relating to the pensions, investment, and
insurance industries in the jurisdictions in which Aegon
operates;
- Standard setting initiatives of supranational standard setting
bodies such as the Financial Stability Board and the International
Association of Insurance Supervisors or changes to such standards
that may have an impact on regional (such as EU), national or US
federal or state level financial regulation or the application
thereof to Aegon, including the designation of Aegon by the
Financial Stability Board as a Global Systemically Important
Insurer (G-SII);
- Changes in customer behavior and public opinion in general
related to, among other things, the type of products also Aegon
sells, including legal, regulatory or commercial necessity to meet
changing customer expectations;
- Acts of God, acts of terrorism, acts of war and pandemics;
- Changes in the policies of central banks and/or
governments;
- Lowering of one or more of Aegon's debt ratings issued by
recognized rating organizations and the adverse impact such action
may have on Aegon's ability to raise capital and on its liquidity
and financial condition;
- Lowering of one or more of insurer financial strength ratings
of Aegon's insurance subsidiaries and the adverse impact such
action may have on the premium writings, policy retention,
profitability and liquidity of its insurance subsidiaries;
- The effect of the European Union's Solvency II requirements and
other regulations in other jurisdictions affecting the capital
Aegon is required to maintain;
- Litigation or regulatory action that could require Aegon to pay
significant damages or change the way Aegon does business;
- As Aegon's operations support complex transactions and are
highly dependent on the proper functioning of information
technology, a computer system failure or security breach may
disrupt Aegon's business, damage its reputation and adversely
affect its results of operations, financial condition and cash
flows;
- Customer responsiveness to both new products and distribution
channels;
- Competitive, legal, regulatory, or tax changes that affect
profitability, the distribution cost of or demand for Aegon's
products;
- Changes in accounting regulations and policies or a change by
Aegon in applying such regulations and policies, voluntarily or
otherwise, which may affect Aegon's reported results and
shareholders' equity;
- The impact of acquisitions and divestitures, restructurings,
product withdrawals and other unusual items, including Aegon's
ability to integrate acquisitions and to obtain the anticipated
results and synergies from acquisitions;
- Catastrophic events, either manmade or by nature, could result
in material losses and significantly interrupt Aegon's business;
and
- Aegon's failure to achieve anticipated levels of earnings or
operational efficiencies as well as other cost saving and excess
capital and leverage ratio management initiatives.
Further details of potential risks and uncertainties affecting
Aegon are described in its filings with the Netherlands Authority
for the Financial Markets and the US Securities and Exchange
Commission, including the Annual Report. These forward-looking
statements speak only as of the date of this document. Except as
required by any applicable law or regulation, Aegon expressly
disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any
updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained
herein to reflect any change in Aegon's expectations with regard
thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on
which any such statement is based.
All comparisons in this release are against the fourth quarter
of 2014, unless stated otherwise.
Media relations
Debora de Laaf
+31-(0)-70-344-8730
gcc@aegon.com
Investor relations
Willem van den Berg
+31-(0)-70-344-8305
ir@aegon.com
PRN NLD