BERLIN (AP) — Automaker BMW AG says it is buying a car leasing unit of Dutch bank ING Groep NV for euro637 million ($912 million).
BMW said Friday that its international fleet management division, Alphabet, will acquire ING Car Lease in a deal expected to close in the fourth quarter.
Alphabet chief Norbert van den Eijnden says that "in the growing European fleet management market, ING Car Lease is the perfect fit to complement the activities" of the BMW subsidiary.
ING Car Lease manages 240,000 vehicles in eight European countries, and has some 1,200 employees.
ING has been revamping its business since it was bailed out by the Dutch state during the 2008 financial crisis, and plans to separate its banking and insurance arms by the end of 2012.