Governance  Corporate governance 108 Corporate governance The shareholders Attendance  Listing and shareholder base  General Meeting of Shareholders Voting at the General Meeting Supervisory Board Convocation Composition of the Board Record date 1 For further details on how Aegon’s corporate governance practices differ from those required of US companies under New York Stock Exchange standards,  please refer to the NYSE Listing standards in the Governance section of Aegon’s website at aegon.com. 2 For more details, please see Major Shareholders on page 307 to 309. Annual Report 2013 Aegon is incorporated and based in the Netherlands. As a company established in  the Netherlands, Aegon is to comply with the Dutch law and is subject to the  Dutch Corporate Governance Code 1 . Aegon’s common shares are listed on the stock exchanges in  Amsterdam and New York. Aegon has institutional and retail  shareholders around the world. More than three-quarters of  shareholders are located in Aegon’s three main markets, the  Netherlands, North America and the United Kingdom. Aegon’s  largest shareholder is Vereniging Aegon, a Dutch association  with a special purpose, to protect the broader interests of the  company and its stakeholders.  Every shareholder is entitled to attend the General Meeting to  speak and vote, either in person or by proxy granted in writing.  This includes proxies submitted electronically. All shareholders  wishing to take part must provide proof of their identity and  shareholding, and must notify the company ahead of time of  their intention to attend the meeting. Aegon also solicits proxies  from New York registry shareholders in line with common  practice in the United States. At the General Meeting, each common share carries one vote. In  the absence of a Special Cause, Vereniging Aegon will also cast  one vote for every 40 common shares B it holds 2 .  A General Meeting of Shareholders is held at least once a year  and, when deemed necessary, the Supervisory or Executive Board  of the company has the authority to convene an Extraordinary  General Meeting of Shareholders. The main function of the  General Meeting of Shareholders is to decide matters such as the  adoption of annual accounts, the approval of dividend payments  and (re) appointments to the Supervisory Board and Executive  Board of Aegon. Aegon’s Supervisory Board oversees the management of  the Executive Board, as well as the company’s business and  corporate strategy. The Supervisory Board must take into  account the interests of all Aegon stakeholders. The Supervisory  Board operates according to the principles of collective  responsibility and accountability. Members of the Supervisory Board are appointed by the  General Meeting of Shareholders, following nomination by the  Board itself. Aegon aims to ensure that the composition of  the company’s Supervisory Board is well balanced in terms of  professional background, geography and gender. A profile exists,  outlining the required qualifications of its members. Supervisory  Board members are no longer eligible for appointment after  the age of 70, unless the Supervisory Board decides to make  an exception. Remuneration of the members of the Supervisory  Board members is determined by the General Meeting of  Shareholders. At present, Aegon’s Supervisory Board consists of  nine non-executive members, one of whom is a former member  of Aegon’s Executive Board.  Meetings are convened by public notice at least 42 days before  the meeting. The convocation mentions the time and location  of the meeting, the record date, the agenda items, and the  procedures for admittance to the meeting and representation  at the meeting by means of a written proxy. Those shareholders  who alone or jointly represent at least 1% of Aegon’s issued  capital or a block of shares worth at least EUR 100 million may  request items be added to the agenda of a General Meeting of  Shareholders meeting. In accordance with Aegon’s Articles of  Association, such a request will be granted if it is received in  writing at least 60 days before the meeting, and if there are no  important interests of the company that dictate otherwise. The record date is used to determine shareholders’ entitlements  with regard to their participation and voting rights. In accordance  with Dutch law, the record date is 28 days before the day of the  General Meeting of Shareholders.