Netherlands-based lender ING EURONEXT:INGA on Monday said it would buy a stake of about 40% in Spain's Singular Bank from private equity firm Warburg Pincus for an undisclosed price, as it eyes expanding its private banking and wealth management division in the country.
The purchase, plans of which were first reported by Spanish newspaper Expansion last week, is expected to be finalised in the first quarter of 2027.
The parties also agreed to allow for a potential reassessment of the ownership structure in the future, giving the Dutch lender the option to increase its stake in Singular, ING said.
The transaction is expected to have a "minimal" impact on ING's CET1 ratio, a metric which measures a banks liquidity to its risk exposure.
Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.M) had also been interested in Singular, sources told Reuters in May, confirming an earlier Financial Times report which said Warburg was seeking €300 million ($343 million) for its entire stake.
Singular, which bought UBS' SIX:UBSG Spanish wealth management business in 2021, has around €19 billion of assets under management, ING said.
($1 = 0.8750 euros)