Partnership with CAM

RNS Number:7145U
Aegon N.V.
28 January 2004



CAM AND AEGON HAVE REACHED FINAL AGREEMENT ON STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP



Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo (CAM) and AEGON N.V. have reached final
agreement on a strategic partnership. The partners will create a joint venture,
which will combine CAM's significant customer reach through its banking network
and AEGON's expertise in life insurance and pensions. The joint venture will
benefit both current and future customers and is expected to become one of the
key players in the Spanish life insurance and pensions market.



During the past five years the Spanish life insurance and pensions market has
grown strongly and is currently one of the faster growing markets in Europe.
Banks have proven to be the preferred intermediary by Spanish customers and have
contributed much to the recent growth of the market.



The partnership strengthens CAM's insurance activities and is in line with the
company's objective to become one of the leading providers of life insurance and
pensions in Spain. The partnership is consistent with CAM's major national
expansion plan and diversification strategy, and will enable the company to
broaden its product portfolio.



The partnership reflects AEGON's continued commitment to its long-standing
strategy to focus on life insurance and pensions in selected countries offering
profitable growth opportunities. The partnership also enables AEGON to expand
its existing franchise in the Spanish market.



Roberto Lopez, Managing Director of Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo, commented:
"The increase in the range of financial products provided through CAM's branches
is part of our overall expansion and diversification strategy, which goes beyond
just the opening of new branches. With this partnership CAM will become one of
the leaders in bancassurance and will develop into one of Spain's top financial
institutions."



Donald J. Shepard, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Executive Board
of AEGON N.V., said: "We are very pleased to partner with such a professional
and respected partner as Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo. Combining the
strengths of AEGON and CAM, the joint venture is very well positioned to become
a leading player in the fast growing Spanish life insurance and pensions market.
The exclusive use of CAM's banking network to sell life insurance complements
AEGON's existing distribution channels in Spain."



Deal structure

CAM and AEGON have agreed to establish a new Spanish holding company, which will
be owned 50.01% by CAM and 49.99% by AEGON. CAM will contribute 100% of its
insurance subsidiary Mediterraneo Vida to the holding company and provide
exclusive access to its customer base through its network of 851 branches. AEGON
will contribute EUR 150 million in cash to the holding company and an additional
EUR 250 million in high quality financial assets. At the end of the fifth year,
the final valuation of the insurance subsidiary will be determined on the basis
of achieved performance and according to a pre-agreed formula.




After the tenth year, parties have agreed to reassess the legal structure in
place and both have the right to unwind the holding company without terminating
the partnership. If it is decided to unwind the holding company, CAM and AEGON
each will own 50 percent of the life insurance company directly. The EUR 250
million in high quality financial assets plus accrued investment income will
return to AEGON. The remainder of the assets of the holding company will
transfer to CAM.



CAM will consolidate the financial accounts of the holding company.



The partnership is established for a period of 30 years, renewable thereafter.



CAM and AEGON will jointly develop the life business of the joint venture. In
2002 life premiums of Mediterraneo Vida amounted to EUR 574 million. The company
will provide a full range of life insurance products and will draw on AEGON's
international expertise in product development, operations and distribution.
Management of the life operations will be shared by CAM and AEGON, while CAM
will nominate the CEO of the operation.



The partnership is subject to regulatory approval.



About AEGON

AEGON N.V., with its headquarters in the Netherlands, is the holding company of
one of the world's largest listed life insurance groups. The AEGON Group
primarily operates in three major markets: the Americas - including the United
States and Canada - the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. In addition the
Group has operations in a number of other countries, including Spain. Close to
90% of AEGON's business comprises life insurance, pensions and related savings
and investment products. The Group employs about 29,000 people worldwide. For
more information, visit the company's web site at www.aegon.com.



About CAM

CAM, the third-largest savings bank in Spain in terms of profitability and the
eighth largest financial group in the country, has a network of 851 offices,
which are concentrated in the regions of Valencia, Murcia, Catalonia, the
Balearic Islands, the Canaries, Madrid and Andalusia. CAM's core business is
retail banking, which represents 80% of the group's total assets. For more
information, visit the company's web site at www.cam.es.



Disclaimer

The statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts are
forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "believe", "estimate", "intend", "may", "
expect", "anticipate", "predict", "project", "counting on", "plan", "continue",
"want", "forecast", "should", "would", "is confident" and "will" and similar
expressions as they relate to us are intended to identify such forward-looking
statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and
involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. We
undertake 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 speak only as of their dates.

All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations,
including, but 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, including:

*         The frequency and severity of defaults by issuers in our fixed
income investment portfolios; and

*         The effects of corporate bankruptcies and/or accounting restatements
on the financial markets and the resulting decline in value of equity and debt
securities we hold;

*         The frequency and severity of insured loss events;

*         Changes affecting mortality, morbidity and other factors that may
affect the profitability of our insurance products;

*         Changes affecting interest rate levels and continuing low interest
rate levels;

*         Changes affecting currency exchange rates, including the EUR/USD and
EUR/GBP exchange rates;

*         Increasing levels of competition in the United States, the
Netherlands, the United Kingdom and emerging markets;

*         Changes in laws and regulations, particularly those affecting our
operations, the products we sell and the attractiveness of certain products to
our consumers;

*         Regulatory changes relating to the insurance industry in the
jurisdictions in which we operate;

*         Acts of God, acts of terrorism and acts of war;

*         Changes in the policies of central banks and/or foreign governments;

*         Litigation or regulatory action that could require us to pay
significant damages or change the way we do business;

*         Customer responsiveness to both new products and distribution
channels;

*         Competitive, legal, regulatory, or tax changes that affect the
distribution cost of or demand for our products;

*         Our failure to achieve anticipated levels of earnings or operational
efficiencies as well as other cost saving initiatives.









Alicante, Spain

The Hague, The Netherlands

January 28, 2004



Inquiries:

AEGON N.V.                                        CAM
Group Corporate Affairs & Investor Relations      Institutional Relations Director
                                                  Carlos Moyano
Media                                             [phone]
[phone]
                                                  Press Office
Analysts and investors                            [phone]
NL [phone]
US [phone]



A joint press conference on the strategic partnership will be held this morning
at Hotel Villamagna,  Paseo de la Castellana 22, Madrid, Spain, at 10.30 CET
(09.30 GMT; 4.30 a.m. ET). This press conference will be webcast live on AEGON's
homepage (www.aegon.com).



This press release has also been published in Spanish and in Dutch. In the event
of differences of interpretation, the English version will prevail.



                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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