ING DIRECT obtains further stake in Germany's Interhyp

Amsterdam, 13 October 2008

ING DIRECT N.V. announced today that it has obtained an additional 208,294 shares in Germany’s largest independent residential mortgage distributor, Interhyp AG, at EUR 64 per share, valuing the company at EUR 416 million. ING DIRECT’s stake in Interhyp will increase from 91.21% as of 18 August 2008 to 96.95% as of today.

ING DIRECT announced the close of its public takeover bid for Interhyp on August 18th. The tender offer for Interhyp was launched on June 20th at EUR 64 per share. In addition, Interhyp shareholders were still entitled to the dividend of Interhyp AG for the fiscal year 2007 in the amount of EUR 2.10 per share, plus an additional one time payment of EUR 2.00 per share, which were distributed following the Interhyp shareholder's meeting on 4 June 2008.

For updates on ING DIRECT’s public tender offer for Interhyp in English and German, please go to www.ing-angebot.de

ING Group

ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, investments, life insurance and retirement services to over 85 million residential, corporate and institutional clients in more than 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of about 130,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand.

ING DIRECT

ING DIRECT is the world’s leading direct bank, offering a focused range of simple financial products, namely savings, mortgages, payment accounts and investment products, primarily via direct channels. ING DIRECT was established in Canada in April 1997, and has since successfully launched operations in Spain, Australia, France, USA, Italy, Germany, the UK and Austria.

ING DIRECT’s mission is to become the world’s most preferred consumer bank through strengthening its core products and expanding geographically. It has consistently been one of the world’s fastest growing banks, with leading positions in all markets in which it operates. With over 21 million customers globally, the total client retail balance of ING DIRECT amounted to EUR 318 billion at the end of June 30 2008.

About Interhyp

With EUR 5.7 billion in new residential mortgage volume in 2007, Interhyp is Germany's leading independent residential mortgage distributor. Interhyp combines the power of the Internet with high quality mortgage advice. More than 250 mortgage consultants can choose among the products of more than 70 mortgage lenders to provide borrowers with rates that are significantly below those of traditional branch-based retail banks. In addition to its direct (internet and telephone-based) channel, Interhyp offers face-to-face advice in its offices in Augsburg, Berlin, Bielefeld, Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Essen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hanover, Karlsruhe, Leipzig, Mannheim, Munich, Nuremburg, Stuttgart and Wiesbaden.