Corporate responsibility
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AEGON’s approach to issues of Corporate Responsibility mirrors the Group’s overall structure. At Group level, AEGON sets out a number of basic principles, providing a framework for strategies carried out generally by individual country units. In line with this approach, country and business units are encouraged to focus on issues specific to their local situations. This approach helps ensure that AEGON’s common principles become an integral part of the Group’s business activities, wherever they are located. More information on AEGON’s Corporate Responsibility’s strategies and initiatives can be found in the Group 2007 Corporate Responsibility report Code of Conduct AEGON’s Code of Conduct contains rules, regulations and guidelines for employees that set out the Group’s core values and its underlying principles of business practice. The Code, which applies to all AEGON employees, covers a number of different areas, including non-discrimination, protecting free and open competition in the Group’s markets, preventing insider trading and money laundering, as well as ensuring clear, accurate, timely and transparent disclosure of financial and other information. Investing responsibly With more than EUR 370 billion in revenue-generating assets, AEGON is one of the world’s leading institutional investors. It manages investments not only on its own account, but also on behalf of its various customers and policyholders. The Group places great importance on the responsibilities it has as an investor and recognizes that poor social or environmental practices can affect the value of the companies in which it invests. AEGON’s investment strategy consists in attempting to balance the need to maximize returns with consideration for social, environmental and other non-financial factors. Early in 2008, AEGON introduced a new Global Voting Policy to operate in conjunction with existing country unit voting policies. In addition, AEGON adheres to a number of international agreements, which set out guidelines or minimum standards for pollution, human rights or labor conditions. These agreements help shape and inform the Group’s investment decisions. They include:
AEGON also offers Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) funds in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Hungary. Supporting good causes AEGON donates money to a wide variety of good causes, ranging from research into cancer and other serious illnesses to education for disadvantaged children and financing music and the arts. In 2007, AEGON donated a total of EUR 6.57 million to charitable organizations around the world. These donations represent 0.3% of AEGON’s 2007 net income. Financial literacy AEGON places great importance on ensuring its customers have the information they need to make the right long-term financial decisions for themselves and their families. In each of the Group’s three main markets – the United States, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom – AEGON organizes and supports initiatives aimed at improving levels of financial literacy in its local communities. Protecting the environment AEGON has a corporate group-wide environmental policy, which stresses the importance of respecting the environment, conserving energy and eliminating waste. In recent years, AEGON has endeavored to reduce its energy consumption and to make as much use as possible of renewable or recyclable sources. Two of AEGON’s country units – AEGON UK and AEGON The Netherlands – have been certified ISO14001 compliant. Many AEGON country units also have their own environmental policies, which operate alongside the Group’s overall corporate policy.
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