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## Organizational structure 

Aegon UK plc is Aegon UK’s principal holding company. It was registered as a public limited company at the beginning of December 1998. 

Aegon UK’s leading operating subsidiaries are: 

■ Scottish Equitable plc. (trading as Aegon); 

■ Aegon Investment Solutions Ltd. 

## Overview of sales and distribution channels 

Aegon UK’s principal means of distribution is through the intermediated financial advice channel, which is the main sales route for long-term savings, protection and retirement products in the United Kingdom. The advisors provide customers with access to various products, depending on the advisor regulatory status, together with advice on the solution that best suits their financial needs. 

In all, there are an estimated 25,000 registered financial advisors in the United Kingdom. Until December 31, 2012, these advisors were classified as either single-tied, multi-tied, whole of market or independent, depending on whether or not they were restricted in the number of providers they represented. The Retail Distribution Review came into effect on January 1, 2013. From this date, retail financial advisors have been classed as either independent or restricted and are remunerated directly by the customer based on the service provided. Aegon UK continues to maintain strong links with financial advisors in all segments of the market. This registration excludes corporate advisors and Employee Benefit Consultants (EBCs). 

A dedicated team supports our key corporate advisors and corporate strategic accounts. 

As mentioned above, Aegon UK is also developing new distribution opportunities, including agreements with banks and affinity partnerships with organizations outside the industry. Barclays and Mercer are examples of companies with which Aegon UK has established a commercial partnership in 2013. 

## Overview of business lines 

Aegon UK has two business lines: 

■ Life; 

■ Pensions. 

## Life 

The Aegon UK life business primarily comprises individual protection and individual annuities. 

## Individual protection 

Aegon UK offers a range of products for individual customers, including life cover, critical illness and income protection. It also provides products for companies wishing to insure key personnel. 

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## Immediate annuity 

In the United Kingdom, funds in pension plans are generally converted into a source of income at retirement, usually through the purchase of an immediate annuity. 

## Sales and distribution 

Individual protection products are distributed through intermediated advice channels. Annuity products comprise internally vested immediate annuities and those available through intermediated advice channels. 

## Pensions 

Aegon UK provides a full range of personal and corporate pensions. The company also offers investment products, including ISAs, General Investment Accounts (GIAs), offshore bonds and trusts. 

## Platform 

Aegon Retirement Choices (ARC) helps advisors and their customers with the transition from work to retirement efficiently and effectively through a technology-driven platform. Aegon UK has deployed leading edge technology to the platform, delivering an intuitive method of saving for retirement through the workplace, taking income in retirement, and dealing with changing circumstances. It also provides valuable online reporting and lifestyle tools that enable advisors to demonstrate their professionalism and display their charges for advice in a transparent way. Professionalism and transparency are key principles of the Retail Distribution Review which came into effect on January 1, 2013. In addition to the self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs), which provide a range of pre- and post-retirement investment options for high-net-worth customers, including insured funds and real estate, the platform also offers ISAs and GIAs. 

## Corporate pensions 

One of Aegon UK’s largest product lines is providing pension plans for companies. Aegon UK offers group pension solutions on- and off-platform, depending on the needs of the employer and employee. In the United Kingdom, Pensions Reform (automatic enrollment) is expected to have a dramatic effect on the workplace savings market, increasing the number of employees who will engage with saving through their employers’ pension arrangements. 

The move away from 'defined benefit' (DB) arrangements, which provide a guaranteed percentage of salary on retirement, toward 'defined contribution' (DC) plans has continued to accelerate in recent years. DC plans are similar to personal pensions, with contributions paid into a plan owned by individual employees and then invested. Generally, at retirement, employees can choose to take a percentage of tax-free cash from their pension plan, using the remainder to either purchase an annuity or invest it in a separate drawdown policy. 

