Insurer Aegon saw second quarter profit fall 24% compared to the same period last year to €655m. Announcing the results on Thursday, the company said decrease was largely due to new accounting practices.

Aegon also announced plans for a share buy-back valued at €1bn by the end of this year and increased its interim dividend payment to 30% from 25%.
Aegon said that its second quarter profit would have been 9% up if the same accounting procedure as last year had been applied. The company said it is performing particularly well in Britain, the US and Poland.
The unease in the US mortgage market has not affected results said Aegon chairman Don Shepard, although he admitted the weak dollar was having an adverse effect.