ING in talks to sell 83.7% stake in Deutsche Hypothekenbank

Amsterdam, 4 August 2006

ING Group announced today that it is in discussions with regard to the possible sale of ING’s 83.7% stake in Deutsche Hypothekenbank AG, a publicly-listed mortgage bank in Germany which specialises in large-scale commercial financing. Negotiations are ongoing and no further details will be disclosed at this time.

Deutsche Hypothekenbank had total assets of EUR 33.2 billion as of year-end 2005, including a mortgage portfolio of EUR 7.9 billion and EUR 13.9 billion in public-sector loans and bonds. The bank posted an annual net income of EUR 32.7 million last year.

ING acquired the stake in 1999 as part of the purchase of BHF-Bank AG. The potential sale is part of ING Group’s strategy to focus on core businesses and allocate capital to those businesses where it can generate the highest returns. The current discussions follow the sale of most of BHF-Bank to Sal. Oppenheim at the end of 2004. ING continues to serve its key Wholesale Banking clients in Germany under the name ING Bank Deutschland AG. ING’s direct banking business in Germany, ING DiBa, is not affected by the potential transaction.

Further details will be announced at an appropriate time.

Press enquiries:
Dorothy Hillenius, ING Group +31 20 541 6522, dorothy.hillenius@ing.com

ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, insurance and asset management to over 60 million private, corporate and institutional clients in more than 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of about 115,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand.