ING posts 1Q2024 net result of €1,578 million, with strong commercial performance

1Q2024 profit before tax of €2,293 million; 4-quarter rolling return on equity of 14.8% on higher CET1 ratio of 14.8%

CEO statement
“We had a very strong start to 2024 with good financial and commercial results as we executed on our strategy,” said ING CEO Steven van Rijswijk. “Our total income has remained strong and was boosted this quarter by double-digit fee income growth, with contributions from both Retail Banking and Wholesale Banking. Net interest income from lending and liabilities continued to be resilient. Operating expenses have declined due to lower regulatory costs, and our own costs were under control, while risk costs were again below the through-the-cycle-average. We have delivered very good results despite ongoing challenges in the geopolitical landscape.

“We have added 99,000 primary customers this quarter, comprising new and existing customers who have chosen to have a payment account and at least one other product with us. This indicates their trust in us and demonstrates how we’re
deepening existing customer relationships. This was also seen in the growth across customer lending, led by mortgages as we have helped more people to buy homes, and in the growth in customer deposits, mainly in Germany and Poland.

“Fee income rose 11% compared with the same period last year and 14% from last quarter. Growth in Retail was driven by
higher fee income for both daily banking and investment products. We have benefited from more customers choosing ING for their banking products and from increased package fees, as well as from growth in assets under management and in the number of brokerage trades. Fee income was strong for Global Capital Markets and for Lending in Wholesale. For example, ING was an active bookrunner on several of the largest euro-denominated corporate bonds placed this year.

“We offer customers a superior experience across all our segments. In Business Banking, for example, we have launched a feature in the Netherlands that enables mobile onboarding for new clients. In Poland, we integrated a product offer page into ING Business Mobile, making it easier for customers to see solutions that can support the growth of their companies. And in Romania, we have expanded our instant lending proposition by introducing an instant overdraft product in addition to term loans, giving customers a complete offering. In Wholesale Banking, the ING InsideBusiness portal now includes a portfolio insights tool that saves clients time by giving them real-time insights into their lending portfolio. The pilot was successful and it is now being expanded to more clients and countries.

“We also continued to support clients in their sustainability transitions, with the volume of sustainable finance mobilised rising 13% from the first quarter of last year to €24.7 billion. We have led a €7 billion syndicated facility for Switzerland’s largest provider of renewable energy, as well as the financing of a wind farm and battery energy storage system in Australia. These deals support our aim to triple our renewable energy financing by 2025, contributing to the transition to a low-carbon world.

“We are working to expand our sustainability offerings in Retail Banking, in line with our ambition to offer sustainable alternatives for our main Retail products in all markets by 2025. In Poland, we have introduced a mortgage-linked renovation loan. This means that customers buying a poor energy-efficient home can receive additional funds for energy renovations, benefiting from discounted rates. This is important because meeting net-zero climate goals in housing is dependent on energy renovations of existing homes.

“We continue to align our capital to our target level. And we are announcing a share buyback programme of €2.5 billion. Our results confirm that we are a well-capitalised bank with strong earnings power, enabling us to navigate our global operating landscape confidently. I am proud of how ING has continued to make the difference by improving our customers’ experience and by working hard to put sustainability at the heart of what we do. This is how we add value for all of our stakeholders.”

A short ING ON AIR video with CEO Steven van Rijswijk discussing our 1Q 2024 results is available on Youtube.
For further information on ING, please visit www.ing.com. Frequent news updates can be found in the Newsroom or via the @ING_news X/Twitter feed. Photos of ING operations, buildings and its executives are available for download at Flickr.

Steven van Rijswijk, Tanate Phutrakul and Ljiljana Čortan will also discuss the results in a media conference call on 2 May 2024 at 11:00 a.m. CET. Journalists can dial-in via +31 20 708 5073 (NL), or +44 330 551 0200 (UK) – quote ING Media Call 1Q2024 when prompted by the operator. The meeting can also be followed via live audio webcast at www.ing.com.

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ING Group shares are listed on the exchanges of Amsterdam (INGA NA, INGA.AS), Brussels and on the New York Stock Exchange (ADRs: ING US, ING.N).

ING aims to put sustainability at the heart of what we do. ING’s sustainability efforts have been recognised externally by environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating agencies and other benchmarks. In 2023, Sustainalytics assessed our management of ESG material risk as ‘strong’. In July 2023, ING’s ESG rating by MSCI was reconfirmed as ‘AA’. ING’s shares are included in the sustainability indices of Euronext, STOXX, FTSE Russell and Morningstar.

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Elements of this press release contain or may contain information about ING Groep N.V. and/ or ING Bank N.V. within the meaning of Article 7(1) to (4) of EU Regulation No 596/2014 (‘Market Abuse Regulation’).

ING Group’s annual accounts are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as adopted by the European Union (‘IFRS- EU’). In preparing the financial information in this document, except as described otherwise, the same accounting principles are applied as in the 2023 ING Group consolidated annual accounts. All figures in this document are unaudited. Small differences are possible in the tables due to rounding.

Certain of the statements contained herein are not historical facts, including, without limitation, certain statements made of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on management’s current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those in such statements due to a number of factors, including, without limitation: (1) changes in general economic conditions and customer behaviour, in particular economic conditions in ING’s core markets, including changes affecting currency exchange rates and the regional and global economic impact of the invasion of Russia into Ukraine and related international response measures (2) changes affecting interest rate levels (3) any default of a major market participant and related market disruption (4) changes in performance of financial markets, including in Europe and developing markets (5) fiscal uncertainty in Europe and the United States (6) discontinuation of or changes in ‘benchmark’ indices (7) inflation and deflation in our principal markets (8) changes in conditions in the credit and capital markets generally, including changes in borrower and counterparty creditworthiness (9) failures of banks falling under the scope of state compensation schemes (10) noncompliance with or changes in laws and regulations, including those concerning financial services, financial economic crimes and tax laws, and the interpretation and application thereof (11) geopolitical risks, political instabilities and policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities, including in connection with the invasion of Russia into Ukraine and the related international response measures (12) legal and regulatory risks in certain countries with less developed legal and regulatory frameworks (13) prudential supervision and regulations, including in relation to stress tests and regulatory restrictions on dividends and distributions (also among members of the group) (14) ING’s ability to meet minimum capital and other prudential regulatory requirements (15) changes in regulation of US commodities and derivatives businesses of ING and its customers (16) application of bank recovery and resolution regimes, including write down and conversion powers in relation to our securities (17) outcome of current and future litigation, enforcement proceedings, investigations or other regulatory actions, including claims by customers or stakeholders who feel misled or treated unfairly, and other conduct issues (18) changes in tax laws and regulations and risks of non-compliance or investigation in connection with tax laws, including FATCA (19) operational and IT risks, such as system disruptions or failures, breaches of security, cyber-attacks, human error, changes in operational practices or inadequate controls including in respect of third parties with which we do business and including any risks as a result of incomplete, inaccurate, or otherwise flawed outputs from the algorithms and data sets utilized in artificial intelligence (20) risks and challenges related to cybercrime including the effects of cyberattacks and changes in legislation and regulation related to cybersecurity and data privacy, including such risks and challenges as a consequence of the use of emerging technologies, such as advanced forms of artificial intelligence and quantum computing (21) changes in general competitive factors, including ability to increase or maintain market share (22) inability to protect our intellectual property and infringement claims by third parties (23) inability of counterparties to meet financial obligations or ability to enforce rights against such counterparties (24) changes in credit ratings (25) business, operational, regulatory, reputation, transition and other risks and challenges in connection with climate change and ESG-related matters, including data gathering and reporting (26) inability to attract and retain key personnel (27) future liabilities under defined benefit retirement plans (28) failure to manage business risks, including in connection with use of models, use of derivatives, or maintaining appropriate policies and guidelines (29) changes in capital and credit markets, including interbank funding, as well as customer deposits, which provide the liquidity and capital required to fund our operations, and (30) the other risks and uncertainties detailed in the most recent annual report of ING Groep N.V. (including the Risk Factors contained therein) and ING’s more recent disclosures, including press releases, which are available on www.ING.com.

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