Dutch banking and insurance company ING Groep NV (ING) has agreed to sell its Swiss private banking assets to Swiss wealth manager Julius Baer Holding AG (JBHGY) for US$500 million, a person familiar with the situation said Wednesday.

Julius Baer submitted the highest bid and was willing to "move quickly" to seal the deal, the person said. There were two other bids for the assets, the person said.

ING's Swiss private banking operations have about US$5 billion in assets under management and recorded a net profit of about US$20 million in the January-August period, the person added.

An announcement on the sale will be made later Wednesday, the person said.

Julius Baer and ING weren't immediately available for comment.

ING is also in the process of selling its Asian private banking assets, and people familiar with the situation said earlier HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC) was believed to the frontrunner in the bidding.

-By Amy Or, Dow Jones Newswires; 852-2832 2335; amy.or@dowjones.com