By Elena Vardon

 
ING Groep's total income for 2024 is expected to be lower than 2023 due to interest-rate development, the bank said as it reported a fourth quarter that came short of views.
 
The Dutch lender on Thursday also guided for its fee income to rise by 5% to 10% in the year ahead, with a cost growth of around 3% and a return on equity of 12%.
 
For 2023, it reported total income of 22.575 billion euros ($24.43 billion). Estimates from a company-compiled consensus see 2024 total income at EUR22.20 billion.
 
For the three months ended Dec. 31, it reported total income of EUR5.41 billion, 11% higher than the same quarter the previous year, and short of consensus estimates of EUR5.59 billion. This was driven by EUR3.875 billion in net interest income against consensus of EUR3.98 billion, as well as low risk costs, it said.
 
The Dutch bank posted a net profit of EUR1.56 billion for the quarter, which represents a 43% on-year rise but slightly missed the expected EUR1.54 billion mark.
 
ING's common equity Tier 1 ratio--a key measure of balance sheet strength--was 14.7% at the end of the period, against consensus of 14.6%. It expects the ratio to converge toward its around 12.5% target by 2025.
 
The lender proposed a final dividend of EUR0.756 a share, in line with its policy and up from a EUR0.39 payout the previous year.
 
Write to Elena Vardon at [email protected]