Diversity, inclusion and belonging

Growing the difference together

At ING, we are proud to have people from all over the world working with us. Having an inclusive workplace where everyone can be themselves is important, which is why our approach to diversity, inclusion and belonging is rooted in understanding, mutual respect and celebration.

By promoting equity and belonging, we aim to create an environment and culture where people can thrive. We know that when people feel valued for who they are and can bring their unique perspectives and experiences to work, full potential can be truly unlocked. This strengthens our business and helps ING grow the difference for our customers and clients, while making a positive impact in society.

Our global diversity, inclusion and belonging strategy

We’re working to create a welcoming space for everyone – both our people and our customers – through what we say and do. Our approach focuses on four key areas that help us make real, lasting change across the organisation.

  We aim to lead by example.

When leaders take visible action on diversity, inclusion and belonging (DIB), and show knowledge of key topics, they send a clear message that this is a priority for our business. Diverse teams are proven to outperform homogenous ones, but they need to be led inclusively.

  We treat DIB like any other strategic priority,

Our approach to DIB is structured and data driven. We hold ourselves accountable by measuring progress and talking about it. This helps everyone across the bank to move as one and make better, more informed decisions.

  We help people turn intention into action.

We know structural inequality exists both in the workplace and wider society. This can sometimes negatively impact recruitment, promotions and pay outcomes for people from minority communities. We are committed to removing bias from all our policies and practices which impact our people’s experiences at work, and we’re taking action across all our countries and business areas to remove barriers.

  Data, metrics and communication, so we treat DIB like any other strategic priority.

We strive to make sure that inclusion is part of ING’s cultural DNA and is reflected in all the daily decisions and actions we take individually and together to grow the difference. Bringing DIB to life requires structural change as well as behavioural actions. We need to create openness, safety and care for people so they can be themselves at work, speak up and share what’s on their minds. This starts with our leaders, who set the tone from the top and act as role models. We support them through training and coaching, providing them with the knowledge and awareness to do the right thing.

Our global diversity & inclusion policy

At ING we aim to unlock our people’s full potential through our inclusive culture where everyone has the opportunity to develop and have impact for our customers and society.

Read all about our D&I policy

Proud to include everyone

Our approach to diversity, inclusion and belonging is focused on understanding, mutual respect, and celebration. We recognise that not everyone experiences work and life in the same way, so we aim to ensure fairness and equity in everything we do. That’s why we want to drive sustained change across all aspects of diversity, striving to mirror the diversity of our customers and the communities we serve.

Age & generations

Age diversity is something we value and are proud of. We understand that everyone's unique experiences, shaped by when and where they were born, contribute to a rich diversity of perspectives, skills, and working styles, which we wholeheartedly embrace.

Bringing together different generations strengthens our work by sharing experiences, generating new energy, and sparking ideas. This builds a strong talent pipeline and future-proofs our business. We’re creating positive connectivity for all ages across ING. We have 14 age & generation employee resource groups (ERGs) around the world.

Disability and neurodiversity

In December 2024, we launched our global disability and neuro-inclusion strategy. Activated across all the countries we operate in, we are looking to create a culture and environment where people with disabilities and neurodiverse conditions, and those that care for them, feel like they belong and can reach their full potential at ING.

We aim to break down the barriers people face and provide with the supportive environment needed to thrive. Our work focuses on the following areas: Leadership and Culture, Talent, Accessibility and Data and Reporting. In the future, and as we learn more about our people, we will responsibly gather and leverage data to inform and adapt our approach. We have 8 disability and neurodiversity ERGs across ING.

Gender

Gender equity is just as important now as it has ever been. We recognise our responsibility as an employer of providing equitable opportunities for women from recruitment through to development and progression. We currently have approximately 63,000 people globally at ING and the gender composition of our global workforce is 47% women and 53% men. We have 20 ERGs across ING dedicated to cultivating a gender-balanced workplace.

At senior leadership levels the representation of women is lower across the organization. This is where we are focused on driving change. Our Global Job Architecture (GJA) allows us to standardise, compare and match jobs to capabilities and accountabilities across countries and business lines. Women at senior roles (level 22+, with significant sphere of influence and accountability) represent 32% of our workforce. Our leadership pipeline (levels 19-21) consists of 30% women.

To drive progress, we’ve set two bank-wide gender inclusion targets.

These targets are milestones in a longer-term ambition of achieving true gender equity at the top of our organisation.

To help us meet our targets, we have a bank-wide action plan in place launched in 2022. It includes sustainable improvements to how we hire, progress and retain talented women. Find out more in our gender equity brochure.

A diversity of views and experiences that facilitate independent opinions and sound decision-making is critical at the most senior level of our organisation. To recognise this, we have set the following gender diversity targets for the Executive Board and Supervisory Board of ING Groep N.V.

Gender Pay

We measure our global ‘gender pay gap’, which is the difference between the average pay of all men and women across the bank, at all levels. The gender pay gap exists in most, if not all, companies as it reflects the broader societal challenge around gender equality. Companies calculate their gender pay gap to understand and tackle any structural barriers to gender equity. Learn more about the gender pay gap in our 2024 annual report.

Equal pay for equal work

We do an annual ‘equal pay for equal work’ analysis to verify whether individuals who have the same or similar jobs and do work of equal value are paid the same. Although it’s sometimes appropriate to pay employees differently even when they’re doing similar jobs (e.g. because of differences in skills or performance), we put remediation plans in place where unexplained gaps are found. Our bank-wide actions to improve gender representation and equity will therefore also work to address our gender pay gap.

LGBTQI+

While there is no doubt the world has come a long way since the Stonewall Uprising in 1969, there is still a lot to do to ensure the safety and inclusion of people from the LGBTQI+ community, both in the workplace and in wider society. At ING we take this seriously. We say ‘no’ to a world where people have to hide their true selves. We want everyone to feel heard, be seen and receive support when they need it. This also means creating an environment and culture that is free of assumptions, judgement and discrimination.

Each year we proudly take part in Pride events around the world. Since 2023, we have taken important steps towards greater inclusion for transgender individuals. We are proud to have introduced transgender inclusion guidelines in several countries, which aim to enhance awareness and understanding within the bank, and to provide meaningful support to individuals navigating their transition journey.

We are dedicated to having an LGBTQI+ inclusive culture and our Rainbow Lions ERGs play an important role in shaping this. We have 15 LGBTQI+ ERGs around the world.

Multiculturalism

In an increasingly connected world, many of us have experiences and backgrounds that span countries and cultures. We recognise that identities can be deeply personal and change over time.

This is why we want to create an open, safe and caring environment and culture. We want people to feel comfortable being themselves and to continue to evolve and grow to reach their full potential, both personally and professionally.

We have 5 established culture ERGs at ING that bring people from all backgrounds together.

Race & Ethnicity

We believe in the inclusion of people from all racial and ethnic backgrounds. That means intentionally building and nurturing a workforce that includes people from diverse groups and communities in all the countries we do business.

Our aim is to reflect the demographics of our customers and the communities we operate in. In doing so, we strive to build and maintain a diverse culture which supports and attracts people from all racial and ethnic backgrounds. We value the diversity this brings to our culture and the opportunities it provides to broaden our horizons, understand our customers, and each other. As a company, we will always stand together against racism and discrimination of any kind. It has no place in society, and not in the global community that is ING.

We have 3 race and ethnicity ERGs that are contributing to the work we are doing by fostering inclusivity, supporting professional development, and driving innovation through diverse perspectives.

Learn more about how we are making a difference together with our employee resource groups.

Our collaborating partners

It is important that we are aware of the world around us and the changes that impact our people and customers. To help us do this, we collaborate with expert organisations that can bring us different perspectives on important diversity, inclusion and belonging topics. When we need it, they also provide us with advice and guidance so we can take informed and positive steps forward. Find out more below about our partners.

Business in the Community is a network dedicated to bringing together purposeful leaders committed to changing business, transforming lives and helping the planet and communities to thrive. We’re proud to be part of their movement to drive positive change.

The Business Disability Forum is a membership organisation that advises, supports and encourages businesses to become more disability-smart. We’re proud to be a member of its network and we leverage its support and guidance in our efforts to create an inclusive environment and culture for people with disabilities, neurodiverse conditions, and those that care for them.

Working Families is a UK charity focused on removing barriers that people with caring responsibilities face in the workplace. Our membership provides us with access to advice and resources that help us shape the work we are doing for parents and carers.

Workplace Pride is a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to improving the lives of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and Queer (LGBTIQ+) people in workplaces worldwide. We’re proud to be a founding partner, and together, we continue to advocate for more inclusive workplaces where LGBTIQ+ people can truly be themselves and feel valued.

Awards and recognition

Workplace Pride - Advocate level

Each year we take part in the International Workplace Pride Global Benchmark. This benchmark scores companies in eight areas and identifies best practices, looking into ways to raise the standards.

For the last 10 consecutive years, we have improved our scores. In 2025, we’ve retained advocate status, scoring 93.9% – up from 90.6% last year – and leading the financial sector with top marks in inclusion, support, and communications.

Diversity Leaders 2022: recognition by Financial Times

ING has been recognised by the Financial Times as a diversity leader and one of Europe’s most inclusive companies. The Financial Times looks at a wide range of employers focusing specifically on gender, age, ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation and conducts an independent study that assesses employees’ perception of companies’ inclusiveness or efforts to promote various aspects of diversity. In 2022, ING was listed in 225th place out of 850 companies and in 2023, ING was listed in 137th place out of 850 companies.