Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on January 29, 2026
2 min readLast updated: January 29, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleING Groep exceeded Q4 profit expectations for 2025 and projects growth for 2026 and 2027, driven by increased fee income and a growing customer base.
By Mateusz Rabiega and Jakob Van Calster
Jan 29 (Reuters) - International bank ING Groep beat quarterly profit expectations on Thursday, thanks to strong interest and fee income for the last three months of 2025 and projected improved earnings over the next two years.
The lender's fourth-quarter profit stood at 1.41 billion euros ($1.69 billion) against the 1.34 billion euros forecast by analysts polled by the lender, and around 260 million euros higher than last year's result.
ING forecasts total income for 2026 at around 24 billion euros from just over 23 billion last year, supported by growth in loans and fees from customers.
"We continue to see good lending growth in retail and wholesale. We continue to see deposits rise; everything," the group's CEO Steven van Rijswijk said in a call with journalists.
The lender also upgraded its guidance for 2027, which analysts at J.P.Morgan and RBC deemed to be on "the prudent side".
BALANCING REVENUE STREAMS
The bank's net interest income - the difference between the interest gathered from borrowers and paid out to depositors - climbed almost 5% on the year to 3.93 billion euros.
Net interest income propelled European banks to surging profits, but flatlined in the first half of 2025 after the European Central Bank brought down interest rates as inflation slowed.
To make up for the dwindling cash stream, the region's lenders are expanding income streams, such as raising fees.
"There is a limit (to fees), especially for ING ... given the weighting of NII that will only be a partial offset", Morningstar's analyst Johann Scholz said, adding that the lender's fee income relies on asset‑management that depends on market valuations outside the bank’s control.
ING expects costs in 2026 to rise moderately to up to 12.8 billion euros.
($1 = 0.8345 euros)
(Reporting by Mateusz Rabiega and Jakob Van Calster; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
Quarterly profit refers to the earnings a company generates during a three-month period, often reported to assess financial performance and operational efficiency.
Fee incomes are revenues generated from services provided by a financial institution, such as account maintenance fees, transaction fees, or advisory services.
Corporate profit is the total earnings of a corporation after all expenses, taxes, and costs have been deducted from total revenue.
Customer base growth refers to the increase in the number of clients or customers a business serves, indicating its market expansion and potential for higher revenue.
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