Aegon NV has acquired control of the whole of Trans-America Corporation (TC). Aegon provides life and non-life insurance, pension products as well as other financial services. Trans-America Corporation is a financial services organisation which engages primarily with three subsidiaries in life insurance, reinsurance, commercial lending, leasing and real estate services, mainly in the USA. It is not involved in the marketing of life and non-life and pension products in the EU. TC’s main activities in the EU are commercial lending and leasing of trailers and marine containers.
The Commission left open the definitions of product market and geographic market. The operation was cleared, given the low market share of Trans-America Corporation and its negligible presence in lending business in the UK. The operations of the two companies are geographically complimentary in Europe, the main impact of the merger will be to provide Aegon with a greater presence in the US. The Commission considered that the merger will change any market shares in the relevant product markets in Europe due to the companies’ unrelated product lines in Europe. (Case No. IV/M.1498, decision of 7.06.99)
