How do US tax payers feel about supporting the liquidity of Dutch insurer Aegon?
Well, the group has joined the growing line of businesses holding out its hands for Federal Government cash.
The group is considering asking the US government for more than a $1 billion in support. The company may have to buy a US business to qualify for the cash and the speculation is that it could buy a thrift company called Suburban Federal Savings Bank, which is based in Maryland.
Suburban has about $300 million in assets and the transaction could see Aegon inject capital into the thrift to get its hands on the billion dollars. Because they are an insurer they don’t have the same access to the financial support program as the banking sector – without making the purchase.
Aegon has already received $3.8 billion from the Dutch government and insists the billion dollars in US government money is not needed to meet liquidity problems, but rather will give the company more financial flexibility.
Aegon has assets of $125 billion in the US currently, and the additional billion dollars represents a small percentage of their current position.
Aegon is not the first insurance company to consider buying a small savings and loans business to get access to Federal funds. The company, which runs US life insurer Transamerica says the US money would be used in its US operations.
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