AEGON Institutional Markets has been managing risk and providing guarantees for institutional clients since 1981, and as of December 31, 2007 had approximately $85 billion in product balances, with significant penetration in sectors that include cash markets, medium term notes, municipal reinvestment, and stable value offerings that serve various retirement/tax deferred savings markets such as 401(k), 403(b), 457 and 529. Our book is well-diversified, as are our customer base and distribution channels. We know our capacity in each market, and we manage exposure prudently. For more than a quarter of a century, AEGON Institutional Markets has distinguished itself from the competition through three key attributes: an exclusive focus and commitment to institutional clients; seasoned expertise in product structuring and asset/liability management; and outstanding issuer strength. Exclusive focus and commitment Seasoned expertise Outstanding issuer strength We invite you to find out more about AEGON Institutional Markets by exploring our site or by contacting us.
AEGON Institutional Markets, a Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.-based unit of the AEGON Group, is a leading provider of savings and investment products to institutional clients in the retirement and asset-accumulation markets. Our products are issued by highly rated U.S. life insurance companies, which have group financial strength ratings of AA by Standard & Poor's, Aa3 by Moody's, and AA+ by Fitch.
At AEGON Institutional Markets, serving institutional clients isn't just part of our business -- it is our only business. We concentrate solely on providing tailored product solutions that deliver consistent, competitive returns to institutional clients through a range of market environments. We hold leadership positions in several markets and remain committed within these markets to best serving our customers.
Over the years, we have developed a number of new products that are now industry standards, including floating-rate GICs and synthetic GICs, and we continually evaluate new structures to respond to evolving client needs. We also skillfully manage the assets that back our product liabilities. For more than two decades, our integrated asset/liability management process has provided us with strong performance through the gamut of market conditions. We are tested and proven in all business cycles.
Our issuing insurance companies, as part of AEGON USA and the AEGON Group, bring to the table the strength of one of the world's largest insurance organizations. The AEGON Group has $462.4 billion in assets, $430.9 billion in liabilities and $31.5 billion in total capital base (as of December 31, 2007). Its largest operation, AEGON USA, has $243.9 billion in assets, $224.8 billion in liabilities and $19.1 billion in shareholders' equity (as of December 31, 2007). Together, these resources give us the wherewithal and flexibility needed to deliver innovative and high-quality products to our institutional markets.