On 28 March 2025, Milieudefensie formally started a court case against ING regarding our climate action approach. Milieudefensie set out a series of unrealistic and unreasonable demands which they want the court to impose on ING.

If these demands were granted, ING would need to stop doing business with a large number of companies and homeowners and comply with a set of rules that contradict existing legislation.

Milieudefensie’s approach will not help the world achieve its climate goals. If we’re forced to move away from clients, it won’t help the transition and may harm the economy.

For info in Dutch visit the  ‘Klimaatzaak' page - on ING.nl.

Frequently asked questions

What’s our reaction to the Milieudefensie legal case?

Milieudefensie’s demands won’t help the climate:

  • We are committed to climate action and confident in our science-based approach.
  • Milieudefensie has set out a series of unrealistic and unreasonable demands which they want the court to impose on ING.
  • If these demands were granted, ING would need to stop doing business with a large number of companies and homeowners and comply with a set of rules that contradict existing legislation.
  • What Milieudefensie wants might sound good – but their approach will not help the world achieve its climate goals.
  • If we’re forced to move away from clients in the way Milieudefensie wants, it may harm the economy and won’t help towards the climate transition. ING’s loan book might look greener – but the world would not be.
  • This reasoning is at the core of the Statement of Defence we have submitted to the Dutch court in response to the climate lawsuit.
  • We want to play our role as a bank in society while helping our clients finance their transitions to a sustainable future - from individual homeowners to large companies who want to become more energy efficient or protect themselves against climate risks.
  • We will not let a lengthy legal process distract us from the work we are doing in supporting our clients in the transition.

Why are we confident in our climate approach?

  • Our climate approach is based on the changes needed for low carbon future. We work with our clients on their sustainable transitions, helping them to drive down their emissions while building up the financing of new technologies and solutions needed for a low carbon economy. And because the climate transition needs to include everyone – not only companies - we’re also finding new ways to help people to play their part.
  • Sustainability is a core element of ING’s strategy and we have led the way with many important steps over the years to help our corporate and private customers in their transition journey.
  • We were one of the first major international banks to commit to supporting the goals of the Paris Agreement, and we co-created a detailed and scientific way to manage  financing towards the Paris Agreement’s goal of reaching net zero by 2050. We are doing just that for the most carbon-heavy parts of our portfolio, where we support our clients in their transition.
  • We take a science-based approach to climate action and adapt according to the latest insights. Our climate targets have also been validated by the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi).

See our climate action page for more information.

Why do we disagree with Milieudefensie?

We disagree with Milieudefensie’s suggested way of tackling climate change for three main reasons:

At the core, Milieudefensie’s demands won’t help the climate transition

Forcing us to pull out of high emitting sectors on an unrealistic and imposed timeline will not help society transition to a low carbon economy in an orderly way. Instead it could negatively impact the economy and our customers. Milieudefensie’s demands won’t lead to lower emissions in real terms. Our clients’ activities will just be financed by another bank, so the emissions will likely stay the same. In other words, if we stop working with high emitting clients, ING’s loan book might look greener but the world would not be.

Millieudefensie’s demands are not in line with Dutch or EU banking and climate legislation

The Netherlands and the EU have comprehensive and detailed policies and legislation in place to tackle climate change – specifically designed to balance various needs in society. This legislation deliberately does not include requirements for banks to withdraw from emission intensive sectors. These industries are working on their transitions within the boundaries set by governments and they need financing to make that change. Stepping away would be counterproductive.

Milieudefensie’s demands do not fit with our role as a bank in the economy
As a global bank our role is to finance what society needs today and tomorrow. At the same time, we must remain financially sound ensuring that we do not put the bank and the financial system at risk. Companies need billions of euros to transition and become more sustainable as well as protecting themselves against climate risks. We want to provide this financing – like for renewable energy solutions, improved industrial processes and sustainable buildings. We can’t play our role effectively if we need to move away from our clients or if we’re restricted in the ways that we can help them.

See our article on the Statement of Defence for more information.

Where can I find more information about climate action at ING?

Please see our Annual report (March 2026) including our latest climate disclosures. You can also refer to our Climate Update 2025 (September 2025) including a snapshot of the highlights of our climate action or see our  climate action page for more information on our approach.

 

Milieudefensie makes many claims in their campaigning against ING – what’s our response to these?

Many of Milieudefensie’s claims (some, for example on social media) over simplify or misrepresent the facts and can lead to misleading conclusions.

Our position on climate remains unchanged. To tackle climate change a transition to a low-carbon economy is necessary. As a bank, we contribute through our elaborate climate action approach which is based on the latest insights from scientists and experts.

Timeline

January 2022

ING has been in dialogue with Milieudefensie for many years. In January 2022, 29 companies were asked to provide details of their climate plans. We provided this information and referred to our detailed climate publications. We have the same goal as Milieudefensie – to help tackle climate change - but we do not agree on the way to get there.  

18 January 2024

Milieudefensie announces that they hold ING liable for alleged contribution to climate change and threaten to initiate legal proceedings against ING.

14 February 2024

 ING responds to the letter from Milieudefensie, in which they hold us liable for alleged contribution to climate change, indicating that they might start legal proceedings against ING.

4  February 2025

ING’s responds to Milieudefense’s  letter of 15 January 2025 which includes a series of new demands.

28 March 2025

Milieudefensie formally starts a court case against ING regarding our climate action approach. 

17 February 2026

ING files Statement of Defence with the Dutch court.

24 June 2026

ING submits Admissibility Deed to the court.

9 September 2026

The court ruled on admissibility of Milieudefensie’s claims.

In the event of any conflict or inconsistency between the Dutch and the English versions, the Dutch version shall prevail.

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