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Annual Report 2002 · ING Group48
Report of the Executive Board
Policy
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has always
been part of ING’s way of doing business. An
important feature is that CSR is becoming
increasingly aligned with ING’s overall business
strategy. Furthermore, CSR performance is
becoming subject to more objective and
measurable standards, such as the guidelines of
the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
Transparency, trust and ethical behaviour
are the cornerstones of ING’s CSR policy. As a
worldwide financial services provider, ING is
confronted with many complex social and
ethical issues. An ongoing dialogue with stake-
holders is therefore indispensable in order to
better cope with those dilemmas. ING’s policy is
to constantly find ways to increase transparency in
the way it does business. As part of this aim,
improving ING’s financial and non-financial
reporting practices will provide a better insight
into how ING is managing its business. ING’s
employees are expected to act in accordance
with the ING Business Principles at all times. The
business principles provide a solid framework of
values and principles that cover a number of
ethical, social and environmental issues.
Highlights
Stakeholder dialogue
ING made good progress on CSR with a variety
of initiatives. For instance, stakeholder dialogue
was improved by launching a new website, as
part of ING’s corporate website. The site allows
interested parties to communicate directly with
ING on CSR issues. As in the previous year, ING
held bilateral discussions in 2002 with several
NGOs. Progress was made during the year in
developing new key performance indicators
(KPIs) to measure ING’s performance on CSR in a
more systematic way.
Clients
ING also took steps to improve its dialogue with
and service to clients. Postbank opened new
service points in rural areas in response to
growing dissatisfaction with the dwindling
presence of bank branches in the countryside.
ING also began to investigate the possibility of
launching an exchange to trade emissions rights.
The so-called ‘financiële bijsluiter’, a mandatory
information sheet for certain financial products,
was introduced in 2002 in response to new
legislation in the Netherlands aimed at making
retail financial products and services more
transparent and easier to understand. The ING
global sustainable equity funds once again
outperformed their benchmark, the MSCI World.
The funds benefited from a relatively defensive
portfolio. ING also advises private and
  
BUILDING TRUST IN
A TURBULENT WORLD
The turbulence of 2002 demonstrated once again how
important a commitment to corporate social responsibility is.
There were no signs of a worldwide economic recovery and
corporate scandals brought quite a few companies in serious
danger. The economic problems had a substantial impact on
the financial sector, including ING. Building trust among
clients, investors, employees and stakeholders in society is a
top priority, especially in tough times like these. Sustainable
development and corporate social responsibility therefore
remain high on ING’s agenda.
 
ING’s policy on corporate
social responsibility based
on trust, transparency and
ethical behaviour
—
New key performance
indicators developed
—
Postbank opens service
points in rural areas
—
ING’s sustainable equity
funds outperformed their
benchmark