ING Direct 2008 Annual Report Download - page 52

ING Group Annual Report 2008
1.2 Report of the Executive Board
50
Corporate responsibility (continued)
In all our business activities, ING strives for the highest ethical
standards. ING Investment Management, for example, signed
up to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) on
1 September 2008. Launched in 2006 by the UN Secretary
General, the PRI are a set of global best-practices for responsible
investing. The PRI is a partnership with the UN Global Compact
and the Finance Initiative of the UN Environmental Programme,
both of which ING is a member. These principles are designed to
help investors consider the environmental, social and governance
issues in investment decision-making and ownership practices.
With regard to project financing, Wholesale Banking has
subscribed to the Equator Principles since 2003. These ensure that
socio-environmental risks form an essential part in our overall risk
analysis of the projects we finance.
Sustainable products
We strive to meet the growing demand from customers for
products and services that are environmentally friendly and socially
responsible in addition to generating a good return. To cater to
those needs, ING offers several funds and products that allow
them to do this. Examples are sustainable investment funds
including the so-called thematic funds that offer clients the
opportunity to invest in topics such as water, renewable energy
and microfinance. Green deposits or notes and eco-efficient Car
Lease opportunities for clients are also part of ING’s sustainable
product range. The amount of sustainable assets under
management was EUR 2,295 million in 2008.
Financial inclusion and education
We now more than ever need to be accessible, easy to understand,
transparent and ready to serve our customers with professional
advice in order to help them manage their financial future. At the
same time, the choice and complexity of products and delivery
channels has increased substantially throughout the financial
sector. Therefore, easy access, reducing complexity and clear and
transparent information are essential parts of our commitment to
treating our customers fairly and being responsive to their needs.
We believe that providing additional information to educate people
on financial products is a key element in empowering customers
with the confidence and capacity to take more appropriate
financial decisions. In our view, financial education should be
complementary to adequate consumer protection and to the
responsibility of treating our customers fairly. Moreover, education
can only be effective if it is relevant to people’s needs. Therefore,
our initiatives are developed to link in with the different phases of
our customers’ lives, from buying a house to managing a pension.
We place an emphasis on investing in financial education for
youth, as we believe it is important that good financial habits are
developed early in life. In recent years, we have started several
financial education initiatives around the world. ING Vysya Bank
in India launched the portal www.kidzzbank.com to help children
understand the concept of money and savings in a fun way. In
Peru, ING has partnered with the Aflatoun organisation and the
Peruvian Ministry of Education to advance the financial education
of Peruvian children. The ING Foundation in the US has joined with
charity Girls Inc. to create a pioneering initiative for high school
girls. The programme aims at teaching girls how to invest. ING has
also developed educational tools for its (potential) clients.
An example is the L-earn online education package from ING
Australia. L-earn covers key investment topics and is relevant to
people regardless of age, risk tolerance, existing wealth or current
level of investment and knowledge.
Community commitment
ING feels it has a responsibility to make a positive contribution
to society by donating and sponsoring projects in the field
of education in particular. Through our main global charity
programme ING Chances for Children, and in cooperation with
UNICEF, we give children a real chance of securing a better future
by providing them with education. Our employees are the
cornerstone of the programme’s success, either through their
donations (which are matched by ING) or by providing voluntary
help. In 2008, we provided thousands of children with primary
education through the programme.
On 20 November 2008, the UN Day of the Child, ING Chances
for Children held its first global charity event, the ING Global
Challenge. Staff from 29 countries volunteered more than 29,000
hours, raised EUR 986,400 and promoted the importance of
supporting education in their communities.
Art, culture and sports
Also in the fields of art, culture and sports, ING feels committed to
contributing to society. Our cultural sponsorships focus on music,
fine arts and design. In the Netherlands, for example, ING is
the main sponsor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the
Rijksmuseum and the Zuiderzeemuseum. In 2008, an innovative
approach was taken to establishing a think tank for various
business problems. This group consists of young talented
designers who, in cooperation with ING employees, came up with
innovative, creative and useful solutions. In the field of sports, ING
sponsors soccer and the ING Renault F1 Team. It has also been the
title sponsor of the ING New York City marathon for several years.
Business units throughout the company support various initiatives
in their own communities, such as the Society for the Preservation
of Nature, sponsored by ING in the Netherlands.
Impact on the environment
ING supports the thesis that healthy economic growth and
environmental care are two sides of the same coin. Environmental
protection is a fundamental part of our commitment to conduct
our business responsibly.
In 2005, ING issued a global internal environmental statement,
which outlines three areas in which ING believes its direct impact
on the environment is most significant and which can be controlled
effectively: energy consumption, business travel and paper
consumption. These three areas cause about 99% of our direct
environmental footprint. Furthermore, ING was one of the first
major Dutch financial institutions to be 100% carbon neutral.
This was achieved in 2007. By lowering our energy consumption,
using green energy and investing in renewable energy projects,
we have reduced our net CO2 emission to zero.
ING has drawn up sector-specific policies to prevent or limit our
indirect impact on the environment. Our financing activities, for
example, may involve us indirectly in operations which can be
harmful to the environment. This mainly applies to financing
of the oil, gas, mining, forestry, paper and agricultural sectors.