Aegon has signed a deal with Nationwide Building Society to continue providing the Investor Portfolio Service (IPS) for new and existing business, following the recent acquisition of Cofunds.

IPS is powered by Cofunds and enables customers and their advisers to manage their investments, including stocks and shares ISAs, OEICs and unit trusts through an online service.

Nationwide is one of the main major providers using the service, with approximately £8billion of assets managed through it.

Today’s heads of terms arrangement covers both provision of new and existing business, Aegon stated.

Bosses at Aegon pledged that these customers “will benefit from the same technology upgrade and investment that Aegon is providing to retail advisers currently using the Cofunds platform”.

Larry Banda, Nationwide’s divisional director for Financial Planning, protection and investments, said: “Nationwide welcomes the announcement of Aegon’s plans to service both new and existing business for our investment customers and to develop its online applications, and we look forward to developing a strong strategic partnership.

“With the commitment to ongoing investment that Aegon is making, this move should secure for our customers a first class service that meets their investment needs.”

Mark Till, Aegon’s chief distribution and marketing officer, said: “Our acquisition of Cofunds and IPS provides certainty over the long-term ownership of the business.

“We’ve made it very clear we intend to invest in the technology and service behind the business and it’s great news that Nationwide has expressed its confidence in Aegon and its business model by committing to continue to work with us for new and existing business.”