ING continued to achieve strong commercial
momentum |
· |
Retail
customer base grew to 38.4 million in 4Q18, and primary customer
relationships grew by 300,000 to reach 12.5 million |
· |
Net core
lending increased by €3.2 billion in 4Q18; net customer deposit
inflow amounted to €7.7 billion |
|
ING 4Q18 underlying pre-tax result of €1,692
million; full-year 2018 underlying pre-tax result up 4.5% on
2017 |
· |
Results
reflect continued business growth at resilient margins, higher net
commission and fee income, and lower risk costs |
· |
Full-year
underlying ROE rose to 11.2% and fully loaded CET1 ratio is strong
at 14.5%; FY2018 dividend of €0.68 per share
|
CEO statement
"This past year has been filled with both achievements to be proud
of and challenges to overcome and learn from," said Ralph Hamers,
CEO of ING Group. "Following the settlement we reached with Dutch
authorities in September 2018, we are continuing our know your
customer (KYC) enhancement programme, emphasising regulatory
compliance as the key priority. The organisation continues to work
hard on enhancing our customer due diligence files and on a number
of structural solutions to bring our anti-money laundering
activities to a sustainably better level. We're committed to
conducting our business with integrity, and regulatory compliance
remains the priority for 2019 and beyond.
"At the same time, we've maintained the focus on our customers by
continuing to create innovative products and services while
transforming internally so we can provide customers with a
differentiating and efficient banking experience. As we work to
accelerate the pace of innovation, fintech fund ING Ventures made
several investments. We invested in multibank platform Cobase, for
example, which makes it easier and more efficient for international
corporate clients to work with multiple banks. We also invested,
together with UniCredit, in Axyon AI, an Italian company that helps
banks offer better and faster advice to their clients by using
artificial intelligence to identify investors most likely to
participate in a syndicated loan, for example.
"We continued to attract new customers. Our global customer base
grew by one million customers over the year to reach 38.4 million,
and the number of primary customers increased 9.9% to 12.5 million.
Our most recent net promoter scores among customers rank us first
in six of our 13 retail markets. Our customer focus is also
reflected in our strong commercial results in 2018. Net growth in
core lending amounted to €36.6 billion, while net growth in
customer deposits was €19.3 billion. ING's full-year underlying
pre-tax result rose 4.5% to €7,524 million, reflecting continued
business growth at resilient interest margins, despite heightened
competition in some of our markets; higher net commission and fee
income; and somewhat lower risk costs. ING's full-year underlying
return on equity increased from 2017 to 11.2% and the fully loaded
CET1 ratio came in strong at 14.5%. We propose a full-year 2018
cash dividend of €0.68 per share, comprising the interim dividend
of €0.24 paid in August 2018 and a final dividend of €0.44 per
share.
"Fourth-quarter underlying operating expenses fell 1.9%
year-on-year, but they rose 11.3% from the third quarter, mainly
due to higher regulatory costs related to the Dutch banking tax. We
stepped up our cost-saving measures, resulting in a four-quarter
rolling average cost-to-income ratio of 54.8%. We see a need for
further cost discipline as we expect lower lending growth in
Wholesale Banking, possible increases in regulatory expenses as
well as due to the fact that Financial Markets profitability
continues to be challenging.
"As we take steps to build a sustainable future for our company and
our customers, we've achieved a milestone in our ambition to steer
our €600 billion loan book towards the well-below two-degree goal
of the Paris Agreement. I'm proud that four major global banks have
already joined us in our pledge - together, we have a combined loan
book of €2.4 trillion. We believe that banks have a vital role to
play in scaling, accelerating and financing the transition towards
a low-carbon economy. Together, we are stronger. Supporting this
transition, ING successfully issued the largest ever green bond
transaction certified under the Climate Bonds Standard, and the
largest ever from a European bank. The bonds will fund a green loan
portfolio of new and existing loans in renewable energy and green
buildings.
"We've started 2019 with total dedication to our regulatory and
compliance commitments, while always remembering who we're here for
- our customers. Empowering them to stay a step ahead in life and
in business remains our guiding purpose." |
|
Further information
All publications related to ING's 4Q/FY2018 results can be found at
www.ing.com/4q18, including a video with Ralph Hamers. The video is
also available on YouTube. Additional financial information is
available at www.ing.com/qr:
· Full ING Group FY/4Q2018 press release (PDF)
· ING Group analyst presentation (PDF, also available via
SlideShare)
· ING Group historical trend data (PDF, XLS)
For further information on ING, please visit www.ing.com. Frequent
news updates can be found in the Newsroom or via the @ING_news
Twitter feed. Photos of ING operations, buildings and its
executives are available for download at Flickr. Footage (B-roll)
of ING is available via ing.yourmediakit.com or can be requested by
emailing info@yourmediakit.com. ING presentations are available at
SlideShare. |
|
Investor conference call, Media conference call and
webcasts
Ralph Hamers, Koos Timmermans and Steven van Rijswijk will discuss
the results in an Investor conference call on 6 February 2019
at 9:00 a.m. CET. Members of the investment community can join the
conference call at +31 20 531 5821 (NL),
+44 203 365 3209 (UK) or
+1 866 349 6092 (US) and via live audio webcast at
www.ing.com.
Ralph Hamers, Koos Timmermans and Steven van Rijswijk will also
discuss the results in a media meeting 6 February 2019 at
11:00 a.m. CET. Journalists are welcome at ING Amsterdamse Poort,
Bijlmerplein 888, Amsterdam. Alternatively, they can dial-in in
listen-only mode via +31 20 531 5871 (NL) or +44 203 365 3210 (UK).
The Media meeting can also be followed via live audio webcast at
www.ing.com. |
|
Investor enquiries T:
+31 20 576 6396
E: investor.relations@ing.com
Press enquiries T: +31 20 576
5000
E: media.relations@ing.com |
|
ING
Profile
ING is a global financial institution with a strong European base,
offering banking services through its operating company ING Bank.
The purpose of ING Bank is empowering people to stay a step ahead
in life and in business. ING Bank's more than 52,000 employees
offer retail and wholesale banking services to customers in over 40
countries.
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).
Sustainability forms an integral part of ING's strategy, evidenced
by ING's ranking as a leader in the banks industry group by
Sustainalytics. ING Group shares are included in the FTSE4Good
index and in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (Europe and World),
where ING is also among the leaders in the banks industry
group. |
|
IMPORTANT
LEGAL INFORMATION
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.
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 2017 ING Group
consolidated annual accounts. The Financial statements for 2018 are
in progress and may be subject to adjustments from subsequent
events. 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, in
particular economic conditions in ING's core markets, (2) changes
in performance of financial markets, including developing markets,
(3) potential consequences of European Union countries leaving the
European Union or a break-up of the euro, (4) changes in the
availability of, and costs associated with, sources of liquidity
such as interbank funding, as well as conditions in the credit and
capital markets generally, including changes in borrower and
counterparty creditworthiness, (5) changes affecting interest rate
levels, (6) changes affecting currency exchange rates, (7) changes
in investor and customer behaviour, (8) changes in general
competitive factors, (9) changes in laws and regulations and the
interpretation and application thereof, (10) geopolitical risks and
policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities,
(11) changes in standards and interpretations under International
Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the application thereof,
(12) conclusions with regard to purchase accounting assumptions and
methodologies, and other changes in accounting assumptions and
methodologies including changes in valuation of issued securities
and credit market exposure, (13) changes in ownership that could
affect the future availability to us of net operating loss, net
capital and built-in loss carry forwards, (14) changes in credit
ratings, (15) the outcome of current and future legal and
regulatory proceedings, (16) operational risks, such as system
disruptions or failures, breaches of security, cyberattacks, human
error, changes in operational practices or inadequate controls
including in respect of third parties with which we do business,
(17) the inability to protect our intellectual property and
infringement claims by third parties, (18) the inability to retain
key personnel, (19) business, operational, regulatory, reputation
and other risks in connection with climate change, (20) ING's
ability to achieve its strategy, including projected operational
synergies and cost-saving programmes and (21) the other risks and
uncertainties detailed in the 2017 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. Many of those factors are beyond ING's
control.
Any forward looking statements made by or on behalf of ING speak
only as of the date they are made, and ING assumes no obligation to
publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether
as a result of new information or for any other reason.
This document does not constitute an offer to sell, or a
solicitation of an offer to purchase, any securities in the United
States or any other jurisdiction. |