Aegon is rebranding its Asset Management division as Kames Capital in an attempt to distance the UK division from its Dutch parent.

If successful, the rebrand will put distance between the division and the parent company which had to be rescued by a €3 billion bailout during the financial crisis.

In a statement to market today, Aegon said it hoped that growth in the UK business would be accelerated as a result of the rebrand that aimed to clearly differentiate its specialist management capabilities in fixed income and UK equities.

Kames Capital will be headed by Andrew Fleming and will continue to manage insured funds on behalf of Aegon UK.

Speaking on the changes, Fleming explained, ‘We believe the clarity and distinctiveness of the new Kames Capital brand will allow us to accelerate our growth and build on the success we have achieved to date with our UK based expertise.’

Last month, Aegon made its final repayment of the loan, having made 25 per cent cut in operational costs over the previous 12-month period.

In March, a What Investment study ranked Aegon Asset Management as the worst fund management group in the UK, in terms of the percentage of funds that had made money over a ten-year period.

Click here to read the survey.