NationsBank, ING Bid for Montgomery

Montgomery Securities is in talks to sell itself to NationsBank Corp. for about $1.2 billion, though the securities firm expects to receive a higher bid from ING Groep, people familiar with the talks said. NationsBank is battling with ING, a Dutch banking company, for control of San Francisco-based Montgomery, a securities firm that specializes in high-margin business such as underwriting stocks and advising in mergers. The talks come amid a wave of acquisitions in the securities industry, as the 1933 law that separates commercial and investment banking crumbles. BankAmerica Corp. agreed to buy Montgomery rival Robertson Stephens for $540 million earlier this month.