20th Jan 2005 10:05
Barclays PLC20 January 2005 20 January 2005 BARCLAYS INTENDS TO ACQUIRE THE WEALTH BUSINESSES OF ING SECURITIES BANK (FRANCE) Barclays Bank PLC ("Barclays") announces that it has made an offer to acquirethe wealth business of ING Securities Bank (France), consisting of ING Ferri andING Private Banking, subject to consultation with employee representative bodiesand finalising terms. The acquisition would combine two complementary affluentbanking businesses in France and create an operation with over 50 branches,140,000 clients and €10bn of assets under management. Subject to consultation, the acquisition would be expected to complete at theend of the second quarter of this year. Pascal Roche, Managing Director ofBarclays France, would become Managing Director of the combined business, whichwould remain part of Barclays International Retail and Commercial Bankingbusiness. Commenting on the proposed acquisition, David Roberts, Chief Executive, BarclaysInternational Retail and Commercial Banking said: "France is one of the mostattractive wealth markets in Europe with four million affluent individuals andforecast growth in investible assets of over seven per cent per annum. Thisacquisition complements our existing operations and would create a larger andmore diverse business for Barclays in France, increasing its customer base by aquarter, and providing a platform to accelerate growth. It would also furtherthe Barclays Group's stated aim to grow the proportion of our income fromoutside the UK." (ends) For further information, please contact: At Barclays UK: At Barclays France:Pam Horrell/Chris Tucker Adam ListerGroup Public Relations, Barclays Barclays FranceTel: ++ 44 (207) 699 2659/3161 Tel: ++ 33 (1) 55 78 70 75 Barclays PLC Barclays is an international financial services group engaged primarily inbanking, investment banking and investment management. Barclays has beeninvolved in banking for over 300 years and operates in over 60 countries, with76,200 employees and 2,916 branches worldwide. Barclays has six major businessgroupings. For more information about Barclays PLC, please visitwww.barclays.com Barclays France Barclays has operated in France since 1917, and currently has €7.3bn of assetsunder management, 110,000 clients and 40 branches. Barclays provides acomprehensive banking service to affluent customers and is recognised in Franceas a leading affluent banking brand and product innovator. ING Group ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking,insurance and asset management to over 60 million private, corporate and institutional clients in more than 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of approximately 112,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand. For more information about ING Group, please visit www.inggroup.com ING Ferri and ING Private Banking France ING Ferri is the brand name of personal banking activities oriented to affluentcustomers and based on stockbrokerage and wealth management expertise. INGPrivate Banking business is providing dedicated private banking services toupper affluent clients.Combined, ING Ferri and ING Private Banking businesses have assets undermanagement of €2.7bn, 30,000 clients and 13 branches. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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