BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, CRISIS MANAGEMENT, SUSTAINABILITY
ING
ING Group is an international financial institution involved in banking and insurance. It is the 13th largest European bank in terms of total assets. Its main activities in Belgium are Retail, Private & Wholesale Banking. It serves around 3 million customers in Belgium and offers a wide range of financial products, with a defined mission to empower people to stay a step ahead in life and in business.
ING Group is an international financial institution involved in banking and insurance. It is the 13th largest European bank in terms of total assets. Its main activities in Belgium are Retail, Private & Wholesale Banking. It serves around 3 million customers in Belgium and offers a wide range of financial products, with a defined mission to empower people to stay a step ahead in life and in business.
Our mission
ING has been one of the first Belgian banks to introduce a professional approach to sustainability. But introducing such an approach into the activities of a major leading bank presented several unique challenges, starting with overcoming the inertia and resistance associated with traditional banking practices. A comprehensive communication and awareness-building strategy had to be defined to convince stakeholders of the need for sustainability. It was also crucial to establish a seamless collaboration between business and support functions for sustainability initiatives to gain traction and to be ingrained in every facet of the bank’s operations. Another challenge for ING was to recruit a team of sustainability experts to ensure effective strategies. Finally, setting ambitious, yet attainable, objectives was necessary to assess and share ING’s progress in sustainability.
Our method for this mission
- Establishment of a governance structure to facilitate transparent and efficient collaboration between the different departments
- Setting ambitious, measurable and time-bound objectives, aligned with international sustainability standards
- Creation of a specialized team of experts from different backgrounds
Our success
The efforts and commitment invested by ING have yielded remarkable successes. ING succeeded in fostering strong stakeholder commitment by effectively communicating their sustainability vision and progress. This has resulted in a shared understanding and support for the bank’s sustainability initiatives. Thus, ING successfully embedded sustainability into their products and services, ensuring that every aspect of their business contributes to positive environmental and social impacts. The bank has become a trusted partner for clients seeking sustainable financial solutions, from sustainable investments to corporate lending practices.
By setting a clear ambition to “double the impact and halve the footprint,” ING has also demonstrated bold leadership in sustainability. This ambition serves as a guiding principle, inspiring the bank to innovate and excel.