ING posts strong quarterly earnings, annual profit nearly unchanged

ING significantly increased its quarterly profit, partly because interest income showed a clear rise once again. As a result, the financial group’s annual profit for 2025 ended up almost as high as the year before, despite major geopolitical turmoil.

ING ended the last months of the year with a net profit of 1.4 billion euros, representing an increase of more than 20 percent compared with the fourth quarter of 2024. For the year as a whole, earnings totaled just over 6.3 billion euros, slightly below the almost 6.4 billion euros reported the previous year.

CEO Steven van Rijswijk said that ING had to navigate ongoing geopolitical uncertainty. He pointed to the import tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump for many countries in April last year, which he said weighed on corporate confidence, especially during the first half of the year.

For a long time, ING’s interest income was under pressure as a result of substantial interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank in the eurozone.

Van Rijswijk said ING has managed to reduce its reliance on interest income by broadening its activities and expanding its customer base. One result has been higher revenue from fees and commissions, including charges for financial products and services, such as investment-related offerings.

ING saw the strongest increase in customers in Germany, Spain, and Romania. Van Rijswijk added that the bank remains on the lookout for potential acquisitions to support faster expansion.

Cost control remains a priority for ING. In October, the bank revealed plans to eliminate as many as 950 positions in the Netherlands by the end of the year, citing automation and the use of AI among the reasons. The decision was based on a projection filed with the Dutch benefits agency UWV.

Van Rijswijk noted that there is no new information on the scale of job losses. He stressed, however, that ING has been focused on digital transformation and more efficient processes for some time, and that overall employment at the bank has been growing for years, with new roles emerging to replace others.

Van Rijswijk welcomed the outline agreement reached by D66, the CDA, and the VVD on a new government, saying it has helped speed up the formation process. He added that he hopes the parties’ proposals will provide clarity on measures to improve the Netherlands’ competitiveness.