ING CEO weighs acquisitions to grow in Germany, Italy and Spain

LONDON : Dutch lender ING Groep is considering buying rival banks in major European countries to boost its size, the Chief Executive told Reuters, potentially joining a wave of takeovers that are sweeping the region’s financial sector.

The remarks from the head of one of Europe’s biggest banks are a clear signal that it is open to striking significant deals in Germany, Italy and Spain.

“We want to get bigger in bigger markets, including Italy, Spain and Germany,” Steven van Rijswijk told Reuters. “M&A (mergers and acquisitions) is an option everywhere, if it would suit our criteria.”

The comments illustrate the rekindled ambitions of the Dutch lender, which was bailed out by the government in the aftermath of the global financial crisis of 2008, and then reinvented itself as a pioneer of low-cost, no-frills online banking, alongside its smaller wholesale bank.

Van Rijswijk declined to name any targets, leaving his options open when asked if he was interested in Germany’s Commerzbank, one of the country’s most prominent lenders to medium-sized companies, an area where ING is looking to expand.

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