ING to cut NN stake below 50 percent with $1 billion share sale

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - ING , the Netherlands' largest bank, said it would sell a further tranche of shares in its former insurance subsidiary NN Group , bringing its stake in the insurer down to 42 percent, a level at which ING will once again be free to make acquisitions. The former 'bancassurer' group was ordered by the European Commission to sell its insurance subsidiary under the terms of its the 10 billion-euro bail-out by the Dutch state in 2008 and was forbidden from making acquisitions until its stake in NN fell below 50 percent. The 45 million shares ING is selling were worth around 1.2 billion euros (1 billion pounds) at Tuesday's closing price. NN Group will buy 150 million euros' worth of the shares as part of the offering, a bank spokesman said, and it would not issue or sell any new shares. The sale will take the form of an accelerated bookbuilding offer to institutional investors. The bank has previously said it has no immediate acquisition plans. The spokesman said the bank would not comment on any acquisition plans. (Reporting By Thomas Escritt; Editing by Greg Mahlich)