ING Spain is closing in on purchasing a 40 per cent stake in the Singular Bank, a move that would bring it into the private banking sector in Spain for the first time, according to Reuters.

The publication cited a source with close knowledge of the deal, as well as initial reporting by the Spanish newspaper Expansión, which said the purchase was the result of a move by the US private equity company Warburg Pincus to fully exit Singular.

Warburg Pincus currently owns a 93 per cent stake in Singular, which it acquired in 2018.

Singular operates 15 offices around Spain, with around 400 direct employees.

As a private bank and wealth manager, Singular oversees approximately €20 billion in client assets. It greatly expanded its reach in 2021 with its acquisition of UBS’s Spanish wealth management arm UBS Gestión for an undisclosed sum.

If ING Spain goes ahead with the purchase, it could branch out from its retail and wholesale banking operations in the region, moving into working with high-net-worth Spanish customers for the first time.

Although precise amounts for the deal were not reported, other recent bids for Singular provide additional context.

In May, the Financial Times reported the Italian lender Intesa Sanpaolo was preparing to bid for Singular. At the time, sources told the paper that Warburg Pincus was looking to sell for around €300 million, though it was unclear if Intesa would meet this.

Reuters conversely reported that it was Singular’s management team, led by its chief executive Javier Marin, running the sale and searching for buyers.

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