Allied Group: Definitive Agreements With Nationwide








CONTACTS:   For Nationwide Insurance            For ALLIED Group
            John C. Millen                      Media:  Donna Smith
            Nationwide Insurance                (515) 280-4891
            (614)249-6348                       Investors:  Paul Curran
                                                (515)280-4644

            Vince Duffy                         Joele Frank/Dan Katcher
            Powell Tate                         Abernathy MacGregor Frank
            (212) 521-5215                      (212) 371-5999
									


         NATIONWIDE AND ALLIED ENTER INTO DEFINITIVE AGREEMENTS
                 TO SELL ALLIED GROUP TO NATIONWIDE
             AND TO MERGE ALLIED MUTUAL INTO NATIONWIDE


Columbus, Ohio and Des Moines, Iowa, June 4, 1998 - Nationwide Mutual
Insurance Company and ALLIED Group, Inc. (NYSE:GRP) announced today that they
have entered into a definitive agreement providing for the acquisition of all
of the shares of ALLIED Group by Nationwide at a price of $48.25 per share.
In connection with the definitive agreement, the Board of Directors of ALLIED
Group has recommended acceptance of Nationwide's cash tender offer by the
shareholders of ALLIED Group.  The transaction will have a total value of
approximately $1.5 billion.

In addition, the ALLIED Mutual Insurance Company Board of Directors has
entered into a definitive agreement providing for the merger of ALLIED Mutual
into Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.  The agreement provides that ALLIED
Mutual policyholders' interests would be converted into rights as
policyholders of  Nationwide, becoming part of a combined national company of
unquestioned financial strength with a broader range of products and services.
ALLIED Mutual policyholders will also receive an extraordina ry dividend of
$110 million in cash.

Nationwide will also pay $30 a share for the approximately 2.8 million shares
of ALLIED Life Financial Corporation that are publicly held.

The transaction, which will be financed from internal resources, will augment
one of the country's largest diversified insurance and financial services
organizations and a Fortune 500 company. The combined companies will rank as
the country's 4th largest auto insurer and 4th largest homeowners insurer. 

Dimon R. McFerson, Nationwide's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said,
"Nationwide is extremely pleased to be partnering with ALLIED.  This
transaction ensures continued strong growth for Nationwide and ALLIED. 

"This new team will benefit from an expanded geographical reach that will
feature a strong, diversified distribution network of Nationwide career agents
and ALLIED's independent agents," McFerson said.  "We look forward to working
with ALLIED's skilled management and capable employees.  All have worked hard
to make ALLIED one of the premier performers in the  property-casualty
business in recent years."
	
McFerson said that Douglas L. Andersen, President and Chief Executive Officer
of ALLIED Group, had agreed to continue in those roles and that Nationwide
planned no changes in ALLIED's management.  "We consider the management team
to be one of the prime assets in this transaction," he said.

Mr. Andersen said, "In Nationwide we have found a partner with unparalleled
financial strength who is committed to all our constituencies.  Employees and
agents will be part of a larger organization that is able to provide
policyholders of both ALLIED and Nationwide access to a broader range of
products and services than either company could provide on its own.  We are
confident that this transaction will provide many new outlets for both
companies, create significant growth opportunities for employees and agents
and benefit the communities we serve.  We look forward to a rapid completion
of the transaction and to working with Nationwide to ensure the smoothest
transition possible.   And finally, we are extremely pleased that our
stockholders, policyholders and employees will receive outstanding value for
their ALLIED investment."

ALLIED employees who are participants in the company's Employee Stock
Ownership Plan (ESOP) will benefit from a tripling of their stock account's
value both as a result of the Nationwide tender offer of $48.25 per share and
an earnings allocation of the unallocated portion of the ESOP after payment of
the ESOP's debt with the proceeds from the tender offer.  Nationwide is fully
vesting all participants in the ALLIED ESOP.
	
McFerson underscored Nationwide's long-term commitment to Des Moines and the
cities where ALLIED has regional operations:  Denver, Colorado; Lincoln,
Nebraska and Santa Rosa, California.  "Our Farmland Insurance operation has
been  headquartered in Des Moines since 1982 and we are pleased to be
expanding our involvement there.  When we announced the tender offer, we
pledged to maintain the current level of employment of the ALLIED operations
and our plan to add 400 new jobs in the the Des Moines area during the next
four years."

The dealer manager and financial advisor to Nationwide for the offers is
Credit Suisse First Boston.  Georgeson & Company Inc. is the information
agent.  For more information call 1-800-223-2064 or visit our web site at
georgeson.com.  Nationwide's law firm for the transaction is Holleb & Coff of
Chicago.

The offers for ALLIED Group and ALLIED Life are being made through wholly
owned subsidiaries of Nationwide.

ALLIED Group's financial advisor is Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated.  ALLIED
Group is represented by the law firm of  Debevoise & Plimpton.

The ALLIED Group and ALLIED Mutual merger are subject to insurance regulatory
approvals in Iowa, Ohio, Arizona and any other states that may assert
jurisdiction; and all required clearances under the Hart-Scott-Rodino
Antitrust Improvements Act.  The ALLIED Mutual merger is also subject to
policyholders approval for both ALLIED Mutual and Nationwide Mutual.

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