Aegon To Move ‘Legal Seat’ To Bermuda
Aegon announced that it “intends to move its legal seat to Bermuda” noting that “Bermuda has an established, well regarded regulatory regime that will facilitate the implementation of our strategy.”
A spokesperson said, “Aegon announces that it intends to move its legal seat to Bermuda. Subsequently, Aegon’s group supervision will transfer from the DNB to the BMA. Aegon will maintain its headquarters in the Netherlands, will remain a Dutch tax resident and will continue to be listed on Euronext Amsterdam and on the New York Stock Exchange [NYSE].
“Following the closing of the transaction with a.s.r., Aegon will no longer have a regulated insurance business in the Netherlands. Under Solvency II rules, Aegon’s current supervisor, the DNB, can therefore no longer remain Aegon’s group supervisor. After consulting the members of the college of supervisors, the BMA has informed Aegon that the BMA would become its group supervisor if Aegon were to transfer its legal seat to Bermuda.
“Bermuda hosts many respected international insurance companies, including four of Aegon’s subsidiaries. Bermuda’s regulatory regime is well recognized, having been granted equivalent status by the EU under the Solvency II regime, and by the UK under its own Solvency UK regime. It has also been designated as a qualified jurisdiction and reciprocal jurisdiction by the US National Association of Insurance Commissioners [NAIC]. This enables insurance companies that are regulated by the BMA to easily conduct cross-border business.”
“I welcome the transfer of group supervision from the DNB to the BMA,” said Lard Friese, Aegon’s CEO. “Bermuda has an established, well regarded regulatory regime that will facilitate the implementation of our strategy to build leaders in investment, protection and retirement solutions, as outlined at our recent Capital Markets Day.”
