ING U.S., the American insurance unit of ING Groep (INGA), plans to raise as much as $1.54 billion in an initial public offering as its Dutch parent focuses on operations at home.
The unit and its parent are offering 64.2 million shares for $21 to $24 apiece, the company said Tuesday in a regulatory filing. The Amsterdam-based parent will own 75% of ING U.S. after the IPO, the filing showed. The U.S. unit plans to change its name to Voya Financial following the IPO.
At the midpoint of the range, ING U.S.'s market value would be about $5.78 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. ING Groep, which has to sell the unit by year-end under the conditions of its 2008 bailout, aims to complete the sale after U.S. stocks have risen to record levels and volatility in the market has subsided.
At the top of the price range, ING U.S.'s IPO would be the second-largest in the U.S. this year, behind the $2.6 billion initial offer by Pfizer's animal-health unit Zoetis in January, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Depending on the final price of the offering, the number of shares sold by the parent and unit will be adjusted to make the unit's gross proceeds equal to $600 million, the filing showed. The company plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol VOYA.
ING U.S. offers life insurance, savings products and annuities, and had about 13 million customers as of Dec. 31, according to a regulatory filing. Rivals include MetLife (MET), the largest U.S. life insurer, and Prudential Financial (PRU), ranked No. 2.
Interest rates near record lows have pressured profits at life insurers, which invest premiums from clients in bonds and other assets. Slow economic growth in the U.S. and Europe has pressured sales, Moody's Investors Service said in a January report.
