ING Canada in a good financial position to expand through acquisition: CEO

ING Canada Inc. appears ready to play ‘Let’s Make a Deal,’ telling Reuters’ news service that it is in a good financial position to expand its business through an acquisition.
“From an operating point of view and an ability to integrate, we could acquire pretty much any company in the Canadian property and casualty insurance marketplace,” ING Canada president and CEO Charles Brindamour told Reuters after a conference call announcing the company’s 2008 Q3 results.
Brindamour is reported to have said that declining profitability in the industry, as well as the higher cost of capital, has created an environment that is conducive to making a deal. “Given our strong balance sheet and the fact that we have no debt, we feel we are in very good position to capitalize on those sorts of opportunities,” he said to Reuters.
Brindamour did not lay out a specific timetable for such a deal in his reported remarks, but he did say pulling the trigger on a deal “in the near term” is certainly part of its strategy.
According to Reuters, Brindamour said ING Canada, which is 70% owned by Dutch banking giant ING Groep, wants to expand in areas where it has strengths, suggesting a deal would likely involve another Canadian company.