ING Luxembourg held a press conference on Monday morning at which they announced a €107.1 million profit for 2015, with revenues (€263.5m) and costs (€128.9m) both increasing by 9% - the main increase in costs was related to new technologies adoption and staff training.
Luc Verbeken, CEO at INg Luxembourg, explianed that, conforming to their "Think Forward" strategy, their projects - from personal credit to corporate finance - for 2015 were realised as planned. Despite a modest economic recovery and a changing environment, the 2015 profit was slightly up on that recorded in 2014. ING Luxembourg comprises 2-3% of the total of the ING Group. Innovation and social innovation were key to the development of the bank in 2015.
During 2015, ING Luxembourg saw its credit volumes increase by 17%; deposits also increased, by 11%.
Retail Banking continued to expand its foothold in the domestic market with an increase of 13% in loans outstanding and a 10% increase in deposits. In order to improve the "customer experience" ING established a new Contact Center and open a new branch in Belval: in addition to traditional banking services, the branch is without physical cash, but has innovative spaces for coaching and a separate room dedicated to the organisation of customer events, recruitment and training.
Despite low interest rates and an unfavorable environment, Private Banking reported a slight increase in assets over 2014. The transition continued from traditional private banking to increasingly focusing on ultra high net worth individuals (UNHWI). Loans increased 24% and the bank continued to offer investment solutions in a low interest rate environment, also offering clients services to better meet multiple regulatory requirements.
In Wholesale Banking, 2015 was also an excellent year with a 18% increase in loans granted and up 13% in deposits.
Leasing revenues grew by 9% in 2015.
ING Luxembourg experienced a significant increase in customers using banking solutions using mobile conectivity, with 41% in 2015, compared to 31% in 2014.
Staff numbers grew by 5% in 2015 to 837 at 31 December 2015. Construction is progressing on the new corporate headquarters for ING Luxembourg at Luxembourg-gare, its "Orange Bricks" project, with the moved expected to be in March 2017. ING Luxembourg has already exercised its option for additional office space due to internal growth. The move will also new a new way of working impelemented across the bank.
For the 3rd consecutive year, ING Luxembourg was awarded "Best Private Bank Luxembourg" of the PWM (Personal Wealth Management) institution - The Banker. ING Luxembourg was also voted "Best Corporate Bank - Luxembourg" and "Recognised Leader in Institutional Banking - Luxembourg" at the Finance Awards 2015 organised by "Wealth and International Finance". It also received recognition from "Great Place to Work" as Best Workplaces 2015.
In the domain of Corporate Social Responsibility, ING Luxembourg was very active in sponsoring various running events including the ING Night Marathon, as well as the ING Solidarity Awards (for the 4th year in a row) to support the non-profit sector in the Grand Duchy. Internally ING Luxembourg organised an Innovation Bootcamp where 3,000+ ideas were proposed, and contributed to the ING FinTech Village in supporting innovation in this domain, as well as the Kiss Kiss Bank Bank crowfunding platform.
Photo by Geoff Thompson (L-R): Jean-Philippe Fohal, current CFO; Luc Verbeken, CEO; Philippe Gobin, new CFO (from 1 April 2016)
