In 1983, Aegon was born from the merger of AGO and Ennia. Throughout the 1980s, the company continued its international expansion.
In 1986, Aegon bought the Baltimore-based life insurer Monumental Corp. By June 1988, Aegon had brought its growing US business together under a single roof: Aegon USA, with headquarters in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Aegon’s international expansion was not confined to North America. The 1980s saw a series of further acquisitions in Europe, particularly in Spain. By 1987, the company was one of the ten largest insurance companies in the country measured by premium income.
In the 1980s, Aegon floated its shares, giving the company its first access to international capital markets, and the vital funding for its continued growth.
Initially listed on the Amsterdam and London exchanges, in 1991, Aegon went a step further and listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
At the time, the flotation was heralded as, "the most important arrival from Holland since Peter Stuyvesant founded New Amsterdam in 1653."
