Auditors
Internal audit
ING Corporate Audit Services (CAS) is ING’s internal audit group, with around 400 employees worldwide.
CAS provides independent assurance to the Executive Board, the Supervisory Board and the Audit Committee on the quality and effectiveness of ING’s internal control, risk management, governance and implemented systems and processes.
CAS supports ING to accomplish its mission and strategic business objectives through a systematic, documented risk based audit approach to examine, evaluate and improve the effectiveness of ING’s governance, control, and risk management processes.
CAS’ mission, its scope of work, its authority and responsibilities are laid down in the Internal Audit Charter, which is endorsed by the CEO/Executive Board and approved by the Supervisory Audit Committee.
External audit
The external auditor performs the audit on the consolidated financial statements of ING and the statutory financial statements of subsidiaries. In this role, the external auditor attends meetings of the Audit Committee and is present during the annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM).
As part of the audit engagement, the external auditor reports to the Executive Board, the Management Board Banking and the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board, in which (potential) improvements in the adequacy and effectiveness of the governance, risk and control framework are being recommended.
The annual General Meeting held on 23 April 2019, re-appointed KPMG as the external auditor for ING for the audit of the annual accounts for the financial years 2020-2023. Based on the legally required rotation of auditors, the current auditor can be reappointed up to and including the financial year 2025.
The Supervisory Board will make recommendations to the AGM as to the appointment of the external auditor, based on an assessment made by the Audit Committee.
External auditor Independence policy
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act states that listed companies must have a policy governing the independence of its external auditor. By means of the ING Group Policy on External Auditors’ Independence, ING Group wishes to avoid the auditor providing services that:
- create mutual or conflicting interests between the auditor and ING Group;
- place the auditor in the position of auditing its own work;
- result in the auditor functioning in the role of management or employee of ING Group;
- place the auditor in the position of serving in an advocacy role for ING Group
The Audit Committee is required to separately pre-approve the types of audit, audit-related, tax and other services to be performed by the auditor in order to assure that the performance of such services would not impair the auditors' independence from ING Group. ING’s policy requires the auditor to provide the Audit Committee with an overview of all services provided to ING Group, including related fees and supported by sufficiently detailed information. This overview is evaluated periodically by the Audit Committee.