AEGON Sells Transamerica Finance Corporation's Maritime Container Leasing Business

AEGON Sells Transamerica Finance Corporation's Maritime Container
Leasing Business 


THE HAGUE, Netherlands, Nov. 4  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AEGON N.V. (NYSE:AEG)
today announced that its subsidiary Transamerica Finance Corporation (TFC) has
sold TFC's maritime container leasing business to TAL International Group, Inc.
for a purchase price of USD 1.2 billion.  AEGON will provide interim financing
of USD 275 million, which will be repaid within one year of closing.  AEGON
will use the net proceeds to redeem debt.  The maritime container leasing
activities represent approximately USD 1.1 billion in assets.

As previously announced, TFC is in negotiations to sell its European trailer
leasing business.  Both transactions will have no meaningful effect on
shareholders' equity.

The Transamerica maritime container leasing business was acquired in 1999 as
part of AEGON N.V.'s acquisition of Transamerica Corporation. The disposal is
consistent with AEGON's strategy to focus on its core business of life
insurance, pensions, savings and investment products. AEGON sold TFC's real
estate tax and flood companies to First American Corporation in 2003 and in
January 2004 it completed the sale of most of TFC's commercial finance
operations to GE Commercial Finance.

TAL International Group, Inc. is a newly formed company controlled by The
Jordan Company, LP, a New York-based private equity firm.  Investors in TAL
International Group, Inc. include Klesch & Company Limited, a UK-based
investor.

Forward-looking statements

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; and
  -- our failure to achieve anticipated levels of earnings or operational
     efficiencies as well as other cost-saving initiatives.


DATASOURCE: AEGON N.V.



CONTACT:  AEGON N.V. Group Corporate Affairs & Investor Relations: The

Hague, the Netherlands: Analysts & Investors: [phone],

Media: [phone], or Email: ; or Baltimore, the

United States: Analysts & Investors: [phone], [phone],

Media: [phone], or Email: 



Web site:  http://www.aegon.com/ 

Copyright