ING Group To Go Ahead With Insurance, Investment Group IPO; Targets "Pure Bank" Status

Tom Burroughes

5 June 2014

Netherlands-headquartered financial services conglomerate ING Group, which was bailed out by the Dutch state in the 2008 crisis, has today confirmed it is going ahead with the share float and listing of NN Group, which offers life insurance, investment and other services to European and Japanese clients.

The initial public offering comprises existing ordinary shares in NN Group, which at present is entirely owned by ING, it said in a statement. The move is part of steps ING is taking to spin off services and become a “pure bank”.

NN Group, the statement said, intends to pay a dividend in relation to the second half of 2014 of €175 million , payable in 2015. NN Group envisages a dividend pay-out policy from 2015 onwards, payable from 2016, of 40-50 per cent of the net operating result from the ongoing business.

Capital generated in excess of NN Group's capital ambition, which may change over time, is expected to be returned to shareholders, unless it can be used for any other appropriate corporate purpose, including investments in value creating corporate opportunities, ING said.

The intended IPO will consist solely of a secondary offering of a minority holding of NN Group's existing ordinary shares currently held by ING Group to institutional and retail investors in the Netherlands and to certain institutional investors in various other jurisdictions.

ING will receive the net proceeds of the offering and will retain a significant majority holding in NN Group after its listing. ING will enter into customary lock-up arrangements with the underwriters in respect of the sale of its remaining NN Group shares, subject to certain customary exceptions.

The announcement is in line with ING's previously announced objective to divest its insurance and investment management businesses and become a “pure bank”.

ING intends to divest more than half of its shareholding in NN Group before 31 December 2015 and the remaining shares before 31 December 2016, in line with the timeline ING has agreed with the European Commission.

As previously announced, ING agreed with three Asian-based investment firms, RRJ Capital, Temasek and SeaTown, that they will participate in the IPO as anchor investors for an aggregate amount of €150 million.