ING Bank N.V.

Corporate brand

The principal banking operating company of Dutch financial-services group ING, serving retail, business and wholesale customers through a predominantly digital model.

Last updated October 14, 2026

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Overview

ING Bank N.V. is the main banking operating company within ING Groep N.V., a Dutch financial-services group headquartered in Amsterdam. The bank uses the ING brand across a broad European retail-banking network and in selected international markets. Its activities combine consumer banking, business banking and wholesale banking, with services delivered through mobile and online channels as well as selected physical locations and relationship teams. For individual customers, ING provides current and savings accounts, payments, consumer credit, mortgages, investment products and other personal-finance services. The institution has historically emphasized straightforward products, digital self-service and relatively accessible customer interfaces. Its direct-banking heritage is particularly associated with ING Direct, a model that used online distribution and simple savings propositions to build large customer bases in several countries. Some of those operations were later sold, reorganized or integrated into other businesses as ING concentrated its international strategy. ING also serves small and medium-sized enterprises, larger companies and institutional clients. Business and wholesale offerings include lending, transaction services, cash management, trade and working-capital finance, corporate finance, financial-markets services and sector-specific banking. The bank’s international wholesale platform supports companies operating across borders, while country organizations provide local retail and commercial services. The ING identity is strongly associated with the color orange, a stylized lion and brand messages centered on progress, confidence and enabling customers to act. Advertising has often presented banking as a practical tool rather than an end in itself, using humor, animation, sport sponsorship and digital experiences to make financial subjects more approachable. Later brand work has used the promise “do your thing” to frame the bank as an enabler of customers’ personal and business goals. ING Bank is part of a systemically important European banking group and operates within extensive prudential, conduct, anti-money-laundering and consumer-protection requirements. Its business has been shaped by the global financial crisis, regulatory expectations concerning capital and risk, the separation and divestment of insurance activities, and the continuing shift from branch banking to mobile banking. ING Group’s shares are publicly traded, but ING Bank N.V. functions as a group operating entity rather than as an independently identified stock-market brand. The bank’s present strategic profile is that of a European-based universal bank with a strong digital orientation. It combines mass-market retail banking with corporate and wholesale capabilities, while using the ING brand to maintain a common identity across national markets. Exact market coverage, management assignments and product availability vary by country and change over time; therefore, this entry describes the institution at group-operating-company level rather than treating every local ING subsidiary as identical.

History

ING Bank N.V. is the banking core of ING Groep N.V., whose history reflects the consolidation of Dutch banking, savings, postal-payment and insurance institutions. The modern ING identity emerged from the combination of major Dutch financial businesses and was later extended through acquisitions, international expansion and the development of direct banking. Because ING Bank N.V. is an operating company within the group, many historical accounts describe the group rather than the legal bank alone. The group’s banking businesses developed along two complementary paths. In the Netherlands and neighboring European countries, ING maintained conventional retail and commercial banking operations serving households and companies. At the same time, it developed direct-bank propositions that used telephone and internet distribution, simple product structures and competitive savings offers. ING Direct became particularly visible in markets including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, France and Australia, although the ownership and branding of individual country operations changed over time. The ING brand became recognizable through its orange color and stylized lion. Marketing generally sought to distinguish the bank from more formal financial institutions by using optimism, humor and accessible explanations of money. Campaigns addressed savings, mortgages, retirement planning, mobile banking and broader customer aspirations. The brand’s digital orientation also supported a gradual shift toward mobile applications and online servicing, reducing reliance on traditional branch infrastructure. The 2008 global financial crisis marked a major strategic turning point. ING received state support from the Dutch government and subsequently pursued restructuring, balance-sheet strengthening and a reduction in complexity. Regulatory and European Commission requirements contributed to the disposal or separation of activities outside the group’s core banking strategy. A notable step was the sale of the U.S. ING Direct business to Capital One in 2012. ING also separated its insurance and investment-management operations, with NN Group later becoming a separately listed company in 2014. Following this restructuring, ING concentrated more clearly on banking, especially European retail banking, digital customer experience and wholesale banking for corporate clients. The bank continued to operate through country organizations while standardizing technology, risk management and customer interfaces across the network. Mobile applications, instant payments, remote identification and online lending became increasingly important parts of the customer proposition. ING’s wholesale activities complement its consumer franchise. They include corporate lending, transaction services, trade and working-capital finance, financial-markets products and advisory services. This business connects European companies and international groups to funding and payment networks, while local retail and business banks serve consumers, entrepreneurs and smaller companies. The institution remains subject to banking supervision and financial-crime controls in the jurisdictions where it operates. Its post-crisis history has therefore included continuing investment in compliance, risk governance, data controls and operational resilience. ING’s public identity is usually presented through ING Group, while ING Bank N.V. is the principal legal banking entity through which much of the group’s banking activity is conducted. Current structures, country subsidiaries and executive assignments should be checked against the latest official disclosures.

2021
“Do your thing” brand direction
[7]Mumbrella: ING refreshed logo and “do your thing” positioningmumbrella.com.au
ING Australia introduced refreshed branding and a customer-centered “do your thing” platform, extending the role of the lion from brand emblem to symbol of customer agency.
2016
Mobile-first Dutch advertising
[11]Mobile-first Dutch advertisingadsoftheworld.com
ING Netherlands promoted its mobile-banking proposition with a vertical film designed specifically for smartphone viewing.
2014
NN Group begins life as a listed company
[4]NN Group IPO announcementnn-group.com
ING proceeded with the initial public offering of NN Group, advancing the separation of insurance and investment-management activities from the banking group.
2012
Sale of ING Direct United States
[3]Capital One filing on the ING Direct acquisitionir-capitalone.gcs-web.com
Capital One completed its purchase of substantially all of ING Direct’s U.S. business from ING and related entities.
2008
Global financial crisis and restructuring
[10]Global financial crisis and restructuringing.com
The financial crisis led ING to receive Dutch state support and begin a major restructuring, including simplification of the group and a stronger focus on core banking.
2001
U.S. ING brand campaign begins
[9]U.S. ING brand campaign beginsencyclopedia.com
ING launched an integrated U.S. branding campaign built around the orange lion identity and the line “It’s not an ending. It’s a beginning,” seeking to raise awareness of the ING name among American consumers.

Products and positioning

A European, digital-first universal bank positioned around accessible everyday banking, customer empowerment, the orange lion identity and helping people and businesses move forward.

Consumer banking
Retail banking
ING’s retail banking business provides everyday accounts, payments, savings, cards, consumer credit, mortgages and selected investment services. Distribution is strongly digital, with mobile and online channels central to account servicing, payments and customer communication. Product details and availability differ by national subsidiary.
SME and commercial banking
Business banking
Business banking serves entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized companies with accounts, payments, lending, working-capital facilities, cash management and related financial services. The proposition combines local-market relationships with ING’s broader technology and banking infrastructure.
Corporate and institutional banking
Wholesale banking
Wholesale banking supports large companies, financial institutions and institutional clients through corporate lending, transaction banking, trade finance, structured finance, financial-markets services and advisory capabilities. It is an important cross-border component of ING’s European banking model.
Direct banking
ING Direct
ING Direct was the group’s direct-banking format, built around online and telephone distribution and initially known especially for savings products. It expanded across several countries, but individual operations were subsequently sold, closed or integrated into other ING businesses; the U.S. operation was sold to Capital One in 2012.

Controversies

2026
Pokémon Center customer data exposed in CEVA Logistics cyberattack
Pokémon Center, the official merchandise site for the Pokémon brand, canceled orders in Europe after hackers stole customers' personal and order information in a cyberattack against third-party logistics provider CEVA Logistics that commenced on July 30, 2026. Affected customers in the United Kingdom and Germany may have had full names, mailing addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and order details obtained. CEVA Logistics is a logistics company under CMA CGM, and the leak affected eight warehouses across Europe, also impacting companies including Dutch retailer Bol, football club Ajax, ING Bank, and eyeglass maker Ace & Tate.
Source

2021Do Your Thing
Australia · International
A refreshed brand platform encouraged customers to pursue the activities and goals that matter to them, with the ING lion appearing alongside customers in computer-generated advertising.
Outcome. The platform updated ING’s identity around customer empowerment and a modern digital-banking experience.
Source
2020Meaningful marketing during the pandemic
Australia
Rather than relying only on reassurance advertising during COVID-19, ING Australia emphasized practical customer measures, including repayment relief and savings-related support, while adapting its marketing to customer needs.
Outcome. The approach presented customer assistance as a brand action rather than merely a communications claim.
Source
2019Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us
International
ING’s brand advertising associated the bank with women’s football and determination, using sport sponsorship to communicate momentum and resilience.
Source
2016The Most Mobile Bank in the Netherlands
Netherlands
ING promoted its mobile-banking proposition through a vertical commercial created for viewing on smartphones, making the format itself part of the digital message.
Outcome. The execution reinforced ING Netherlands’ positioning as a mobile-first bank.
Source
2011A Decent Way to Do Banking
United Kingdom
An 11-week ING Direct campaign used animated animal puppets and fable-like storytelling to dramatize customer frustrations with slow mortgage decisions, unanswered questions and dismissive treatment of smaller savers.
Outcome. The campaign broadened the communication beyond savings and presented ING Direct’s service promise as a more considerate, responsive way to bank.
Source
2008Your Number
United States
ING’s U.S. business used oversized orange numbers carried by people in everyday situations to make retirement planning more tangible and less intimidating.
Outcome. The campaign positioned retirement planning as an accessible personal-finance issue and reinforced ING’s distinctive orange visual language.
Source
2001ING Launch Campaign
United States
An integrated campaign introduced the ING name to U.S. consumers through television, print and later internet advertising. The orange lion and playful executions framed the name as a beginning rather than an ending.
Outcome. The campaign improved awareness of ING, although broader U.S. business growth remained constrained by the financial environment.
Source
From - To
Netherlands
Airport advertising at Amsterdam Schiphol used departure-and-arrival language to depict personal transitions and life journeys, connecting ING with the idea of helping customers move from one stage to another.
Outcome. The campaign extended ING’s empowerment-oriented brand narrative into a high-traffic travel environment.
Source

Brand decisions

2014
Separation and flotation of NN GroupStrategy
Background
ING pursued a clearer separation between its banking operations and its insurance and investment-management activities.
Action taken
ING offered existing NN Group shares to public investors on Euronext Amsterdam.
Aftermath
NN Group became a separately listed company, while ING’s strategic profile became more concentrated on banking.
Indicative IPO gross proceeds. Approximately €1.3 billion to €1.5 billion based on the announced offer range (June 2014 IPO announcement)
Source
2012
Divestment of ING Direct United StatesM&A
Background
ING was simplifying its international portfolio after the financial crisis and restructuring associated with Dutch state support and regulatory commitments.
Action taken
Capital One acquired substantially all of the U.S. ING Direct business from ING and related ING entities.
Aftermath
The transaction ended ING’s direct ownership of its U.S. consumer-banking operation and transferred the franchise to Capital One.
Transaction consideration. Approximately $6.3 billion in cash plus 54,028,086 Capital One shares (17 February 2012)
Source

Recent events

2026-07-30
Pokémon Center customer data exposed in CEVA Logistics cyberattack[14]Pokémon Center customer data exposed in CEVA Logistics cyberattackpolygon.com
Reported: 2026-08-19
Pokémon Center, the official merchandise site for the Pokémon brand, canceled orders in Europe after hackers stole customers' personal and order information in a cyberattack against third-party logistics provider CEVA Logistics that commenced on July 30, 2026. Affected customers in the United Kingdom and Germany may have had full names, mailing addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and order details obtained. CEVA Logistics is a logistics company under CMA CGM, and the leak affected eight warehouses across Europe, also impacting companies including Dutch retailer Bol, football club Ajax, ING Bank, and eyeglass maker Ace & Tate.
2021-07-07
Paysera introduces payment initiation in Romania[15]Paysera在罗马尼亚推出支付发起服务thepaypers.com
Reported: 2021-07-07
Paysera made payment initiation from buyers’ bank accounts available to e-shops in Romania after integrating bank systems with access granted by major Romanian banks.
Unconfirmed
ING Bank enters online fashion commerce with DealWise[16]ING Bank通过DealWise进入线上时尚电商zfenglish.com
ING Bank entered online fashion commerce by launching the DealWise online shopping platform.

Sources16 sources

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