The Case of ING and the Uproar over Executive Compensation

ING Group is a global financial institution of Dutch origin that offers banking, investments, life insurance, and retirement services. In 2018, the Supervisory Board announced to elevate the CEO’s total remuneration with a near 50% increment from the previous year. On the very day the pay rise was announced, a wave of outraged responses surfaced. Critics drew parallels between the modest pay hike of just 1.7% for other bank employees and the starkly contrasting proposal for the CEO’s salary. However, the proposal was in line with the remuneration policy, approved in 2010, but the CEO-salary adjustment has been delayed repeatedly. ‘The CEO was of premier league calibre but was receiving Jupiler League-level pay’.