Aegon, the Netherlands-based owner of US insurer Transamerica, on Thursday reported a net loss of EUR524 million (US$562 million) for the third quarter of 2015, on the back of charges of EUR950 million driven by the sale of its Canadian business.
Aegon said it took on a EUR751 million book loss from the sale of the low return Canadian business, which was sold to Wilton Re in July.
Wilton Re is a US-based life insurance specialist and acquired assets consisting of Transamerica Life Canada, Canadian Premier Life, Legacy General Insurance Company, Aegon Capital Management, Aegon Fund Management, CRI Canada and Selient, Inc, from Aegon.
The Canadian operations will undergo a rebranding, Wilton Re said, adding that in 2014, Transamerica Life Canada had C$966 million in gross premium revenue and by the end of the year the company had C$11.2 billion in total assets under management.
Aegon is instead looking closer to home to build its operations. Alex Wynaendts, CEO, said: “During the third quarter of the year, Aegon’s earnings were impacted by assumption changes, our ongoing model refinement program, and the anticipated book loss on the sale of our low-return business in Canada. At the same time, sales for the quarter remained strong, particularly in our fast-growing US retirement plan and asset management businesses.
“We are pleased to have strengthened our position in one of our key growth areas, becoming a top ten provider in the US retirement sector through the acquisition of
Mercer’s defined contribution record-keeping business. This strategic development demonstrates our determination to grow and diversify our customer base and expand our offering of attractive fee-based retirement solutions.”
Aegon announced the acquisition of Mercer’s US defined contribution record-keeping business in September, when it also completed the sale of Clark Consulting Group to Greenspoint Capital and the Newport Group, and in November announced plans to sell certain assets of Transamerica Financial Advisors, Inc. to Signator, a John Hancock affiliate.
