Barclays to acquire ING Direct UK
9 October 2012
Barclays Bank PLC ("Barclays") announces that it has agreed to acquire the deposits, mortgages and business assets of ING Direct UK. The acquisition follows the announcement by ING on 2 August 2012 of a review of its strategic options for the ING Direct UK business, and its subsequent decision to exit the UK retail banking market.
Under the terms of the transaction, Barclays will acquire a deposit book with balances of £10.9bn and a mortgage book with outstanding balances of £5.6bn (as at 31 August 2012). The mortgage book had a loan to value ratio of 50 per cent as at 31 August 2012 and is being acquired at an approximate three per cent discount. The deposit book is being acquired at par. The transaction is expected to be accretive to return on equity immediately and the impact on Core Tier 1 capital is not material.
On completion, approximately 750 ING Direct UK employees and 1.5 million customers will transfer to Barclays. Barclays intends to integrate the ING Direct UK business into its UK Retail and Business Banking division. Until integration, Barclays will continue to utilise ING Direct UK's operations and platforms to service existing customers. Customers are expected to continue to enjoy at least equivalent terms and conditions to those which they currently enjoy with ING Direct UK.
Completion is subject, amongst other things, to regulatory approval and is expected to occur early in Q2 2013.
Ashok Vaswani, Chief Executive of Barclays UK Retail and Business Banking, said: "We will be delighted to welcome ING Direct UK customers to Barclays. We intend to maintain the high standard of service and honour the existing terms and conditions they have experienced with ING Direct UK. The acquisition of ING Direct UK is a good fit with Barclays existing UK retail banking business."
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Notes to editors:
ING Direct UK currently operates as a branch of ING Direct N.V. and therefore the acquisition will be effected through a High Court approved transfer under Part VII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.
For further information please contact:
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Investor Relations
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Media Relations
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Charlie Rozes
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Perry Jones
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+44 (0) 20 7116 5752
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+44 (0) 20 7116 7226
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About Barclays
Barclays is a major global financial services provider engaged in personal banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking and wealth and investment management with an extensive international presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia.
With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs approximately 140,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide.
For further information about Barclays, please visit our website www.barclays.com.
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