Aviva plc announced today that it intends to list its stock on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and plans to commence trading on Oct. 20. The London-based company, whose U.S. operations are based in Des Moines, has completed the registration process with the Securities and Exchange Commission and has received authorization from the NYSE to list, Aviva officials said in a press release. Aviva will establish a level 2 American Depositary Receipt program in conjunction with Citibank and will trade under the ticker symbol “AV”. No new Aviva ordinary shares will be issued in connection with the listing and Aviva will retain its current primary listing on the London Stock Exchange. More than 20 percent of Aviva’s shareholders are in the United States.

FBL Financial Group Inc. has hired Kevin Slawin as the company’s executive vice president for marketing and distribution, effective Oct. 12. Slawin was most recently with Allstate Financial, where he has held a number of senior management positions for the past 14 years. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Insurance Market Standards Association. He will be responsible for all aspects of FBL’s marketing and distribution functions, including business development, brand management, sales management and agent recruiting and retention, reporting directly to CEO James Hohmann.

Monsanto Co. reported a higher fiscal fourth-quarter loss today, though expectations slightly beat Wall Street estimates, as a downturn in its herbicide business and restructuring moves ate into revenues, Reuters reported. The company reported a net loss of $233 million for the three months ended Aug. 31, compared with a loss of $172 million in the same period last year. Monsanto has been shifting its focus from its herbicide business, which has been suffering from growing competition and price pressure, to its highly profitable seeds and traits business.

Des Moines native Jack Gross on Tuesday joined Sen. Tom Harkin, chair of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and other congressional leaders on Capitol Hill as lawmakers introduced the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act. Sponsors say the measure will “restore fundamental fairness in the workplace.” In a landmark decision earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Gross lacked direct evidence that he was demoted by his former employer, FBL Financial Group Inc., because of his age.

Julius Baer Group Ltd. will buy ING Groep NV’s Swiss private banking assets for 520 million Swiss francs ($507 million), the European wealth management industry’s biggest deal since the financial crisis began. Baer is paying about 2.3 percent of assets under management for the business excluding surplus capital, and about 3 percent including the surplus, roughly in line with expected valuations.

More than 250 Meredith Corp. employees will spend their workday tomorrow improving homes and community spaces in the Capitol East neighborhood, as part of the company’s annual Rebuilding Together Day. The event marks the eighth year Meredith employees have spent a workday tackling community projects. Some Meredith teams will also landscape and enhance nearby nonprofit facilities that serve the area.

The University of Northern Iowa has been named an outstanding business school for the fourth consecutive year by The Princeton Review. The New York-based education-services company featured the school in the just-published 2010 edition of “The Best 301 Business Schools.” The ratings are based on the Review’s opinion of the colleges’ academic programs and offerings as well as on students’ ratings.