About Us

About ING DIRECT

ING DIRECT isn’t like other banks.

Launching in Australia in 1999, ING DIRECT pioneered branchless banking in this country.  By doing business online and over the phone, we keep our overheads low and pass the savings onto you in the form of competitive rates.

Our simple approach is part of the reason ING DIRECT is such a success story.  From a zero base, we’re now Australia’s sixth largest retail bank, with approximately $20 billion in deposits, approximately $30 billion in loans and more than 1.25 million customers.

This success is mirrored around the globe, where more than 21 million customers in Canada, Spain, France, Italy, USA, UK, Germany and Austria have made ING DIRECT the world’s largest direct bank.  The imminent addition of an ING DIRECT operation in Japan will see this position strengthen further.

While we like to do things differently, ING DIRECT holds an Australian banking licence and our operations are regulated by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, a Federal Government regulator. Our credit rating is exactly the same as the big 4 Australian banks.

What’s more, we’re part of ING Group, one of the world’s largest and most successful financial institutions, offering banking, insurance and asset management to more than 60 million clients in over 50 countries.  With a diverse workforce of around 120,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve clients under the ING brand.

Key Statistics

ING DIRECT Australia

• employs over 900 staff
• is headquartered in Sydney and operates a 24 hour contact centre in Tuggerah NSW
• received the 'Mortgage Choice Lender of the Year' award in 2008
• was named Australia’s Best Foreign Bank 2008 in the Australian Banking and Finance Magazine Awards
• received Silver awards for Best Term Deposit (Short and Long Term) in the Money Magazine 'Best of the Best' 2008 Awards
• is part of the biggest direct bank in the world with A$325 billion in savings and 21 million customers
• is also part of the ING Group, the 7th largest corporation in the world as measured by Fortune Global 500
• was named by the Australian Banking and Finance Magazine Awards best website in 2006 and 2007
• was named Best New Entrant in the 2005 Hewitt Associates' Best Employers survey and was finalist at the National HR Awards for 2007
• is committed to customer service and consistently achieves among the highest customer satisfaction ratings in the market.

ING DIRECT Wholesale Market Debt Programs

ING DIRECT issues debt into wholesale markets under the legal entity name of ING Bank (Australia) Limited.

A copy of the stand alone Debt Issuance Program covering debt issued between May 2002 and August 2006 as well as ING Bank’s Global Issuance Program (incorporating ING Bank (Australia) Limited as an issuer) covering issues since September 2006 can be downloaded.

ING DIRECT Financials

You can download a copy of the latest ING DIRECT Annual Report.

About Eric Drok, ING DIRECT CEO

Eric Drok was appointed CEO of ING DIRECT Australia in February 2006.

In his first year at the helm, Eric steered ING DIRECT to a record net profit result of $145.3 million for the calendar year ended 31 December 2006.  A 19% increase on the previous year, the result included 21% growth in the mortgage portfolio, helping ING DIRECT become Australia’s fastest growing mortgage bank.

Eric’s vision is for ING DIRECT to become the most preferred consumer bank by providing a genuine and better alternative for a range of banking needs.  Through simple and straightforward products, industry leading service and constantly striving to deliver real value for customers, he sees ING DIRECT challenging the status quo and leading the transformation of the banking industry.

Before joining ING DIRECT Australia, Eric was on the board at Postbank, a subsidiary of the ING Group and the largest retail bank in the Netherlands.  It is the Postbank model that has been exported to 10 countries around the world under the ING DIRECT brand. Prior to his Postbank position, Eric was General Manager ING Bank Netherlands, with responsibility for local corporate and small and medium businesses.

He has a master’s degree in Economics and Law and spent 10 years as a part time Associate Professor at the University of Rotterdam.  Eric is married with three children.

ING DIRECT is a division of ING Bank (Australia) Limited ABN 24 000 893 292. ING Bank (Australia) Limited has been granted an Australian Financial Service Licence 229823 and through the ING DIRECT division, is responsible for the advice provided on this website.