For its Russia portfolio alone, ING booked a reversal of provisions amounting to 118 million euros.
(Photo: imago images/Belga)
Frankfurt The major Dutch bank ING significantly exceeded expectations in the first quarter: From January to March, the institute more than tripled its net profit to around 1.6 billion euros, as the bank announced on Thursday in Amsterdam.
In the same period of the previous year, the net profit was still 429 million euros, which was, however, heavily burdened by risk costs in connection with the Russian business. Analysts polled by ING had forecast a profit of 1.1 billion euros.
The institute had a “strong first quarter”, said ING boss Steven van Rijswijk. Investors should also benefit from this. The bank, which is listed in the EuroStoxx 50, announced that it would buy back its own shares worth 1.5 billion euros.
At the beginning of the year, income increased by a little more than a fifth to almost 5.6 billion euros compared to the same quarter of the previous year, the surplus in the interest business also increased by around 20 percent to around four billion euros.
The institute set aside 152 million euros for loans at risk of default, after 987 million euros in the same period of the previous year. For its Russia portfolio alone, ING booked a reversal of provisions amounting to 118 million euros. “We see no future for us in Russia,” said van Rijswijk.
Strong first quarter for ING Germany
In Germany, ING also had a strong first quarter. In this way, the bank in Germany was able to bring in a pre-tax profit of 538 million euros in the first three months of the year, after a loss of 63 million euros in the same period last year. ING Germany’s revenues increased by 28 percent to EUR 896 million.
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The reason for this is, on the one hand, the sharp rise in net interest income, which rose by 69 percent to EUR 800 million compared to the previous year. On the other hand, ING Germany was even able to release 17 million euros in risk provisions. In the same quarter of the previous year, the bank saved EUR 413 million for loans at risk of default.
In business with corporate customers, the bank made a pre-tax profit of 142 million euros, after a loss of 290 million in the same quarter of the previous year. In private customer business, ING Germany increased its pre-tax profit by 75 percent compared to the previous year to EUR 397 million.
With agency material.
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