President: ING interested in pension fund Magister

Netherlands-based financial services giant ING (NYSE: ING) is interested in intervened Chilean pension fund manager AFP Magister, ING Chile's president Sergio Baeza was quoted by local daily La Segunda as saying. "We are always looking to grow. The discipline of our company is that, to grow," Baeza said, adding that if there were a second auction (the first failed) of AFP Magister, ING Chile would be "attentive." Baeza said the most positive aspect regarding AFP Magister is that although its former owners had problems, the pension fund manager is in good shape. AFP Magister was intervened earlier this year after its former parent Inverlink, was accused of fraud and espionage against the Chilean government. ING engages in most financial activities in Chile and the group has obtained significant cost savings due to the ongoing integration of its different local companies, he said, adding that next year the full fruits of the integration will be seen in the bottom-line.