Aegon has said it is now “benefitting” from the acquisition of BlackRock’s defined contribution business, taking its workplace pension assets under administration to £38bn.

In its H2 2018 results published yesterday, 14 February, Aegon said that BlackRock’s large scheme capability “compliments” its existing workplace savings platform.

The deal, first announced in July 2018, means Aegon took on an additional £15bn of assets and more than 450,000 customers from BlackRock, meaning it now how 1.15 million workplace customers.

Ageon said: “As a result, the company has significantly improved its position in this market, leading to a strong pipeline of potential contract wins.

“The workplace proposition is well-placed to benefit from rising contributions associated with auto-enrolment in the UK and the provision of master trust schemes which are increasingly popular with employers and their advisers.”

Then group hopes to deliver “innovative approaches” to ensure employees maximise their pensions.

According to its results, the firm said it spent €19m (£16.7m) on BlackRock integration expenses for its defined contribution business.

Furthermore, Aegon saw its profits drop by 8 per cent to €1bn (£880m), a €253m (£223m) decrease in net income, on the previous six months.

It is not yet clear if Aegon has applied to The Pensions Regulator to become an authorised master trust.

So far, the regulator has received eight applications, including Lifesight, BlueSky, Legal and General, Crystal Trust and two from Standard Life.

Master trusts have until the end of March to apply for authorisation.

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