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Aegon, the parent of Transamerica, wants to move its headquarters to the United States, from the Netherlands, by Jan. 1, 2028.
The life insurer, retirement plan services provider and asset manager also wants to move its official corporate home to Delaware, from Bermuda, and ramp up U.S. life insurance, annuity and retirement plan sales.
Company executives talked about their plans Wednesday in London during a meeting with investors.
The company streamed video of the meeting live on the web and posted a recording on its website.
What it means: Big companies outside the United States still think the U.S. life and annuity market is an attractive market.
Move details: Aegon's main offices are now in The Hague, in the Netherlands. Its asset management business has about $400 billion in assets under management.
Transamerica and other Aegon operations in the Americas serve about 10 million consumers in the United States, and the World Financial Group distribution affiliate has relationships with 93,000 agents. Aegon announced plans in 2023 to become the top U.S. middle-market life and retirement company.
As of Sept. 30, Aegon had $251 billion in assets under management at retirement plans in the Americas.
The businesses in the Americas produced $155 million in new life insurance sales in the third quarter and attracted $519 million in new indexed annuity assets.
Transamerica is famous for once having its headquarters in San Francisco and building a triangle-shaped headquarters building there, but executives said they intend to put the company's new headquarters on the East Coast.
Aegon sells stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AEG as well as on Euronext. It says it will make its New York Stock Exchange listing the primary listing.
The company estimated the move to the United States would cost about $400 million.
The thinking: Relocating to the United States should help Aegon improve how investors value its stock, Aegon executives said.
Another goal is to broaden the company's U.S. annuity product menu, according to Lard Friese, the company's chairman and chief executive officer.
Will Fuller, the CEO of Aegon Americas, said the move will make the U.S. operations nimbler and more powerful.
"There's power in clarity," Fuller said.
Fuller said he thinks the U.S. company that's most like Aegon is Corebridge Financial, given its presence in life insurance, retirement and individual distribution.
In distribution, the nearest peer is Primerica, and, in the life insurance market, the nearest peer is Nationwide, Fuller said.
He said the company wants to be a leader in serving mass affluent customers in the United States as well as middle-market customers.
Distribution theory: Fuller said Transamerica benefits greatly from having the big World Financial Group distribution arm.
"I believe it is a crown jewel," Fuller said.
Having access to the customers "gives you knowledge, experience, data about what customers want, what they need." Fuller said.
Fuller noted that World Financial Group has strong relationships with insurers such as Nationwide, Pacific Life and Manulife as well as with Transamerica.
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