Company: INGVF
Filing Date: 2025-03-06
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0001628280-25-010764
Chunk: 28

Company: ING GROEP NV
Filing Date: 2025-03-06
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 3
Chunk 28
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 the frameworks established in respect of traditional banks and/or faster processes to challenge traditional banks. Developments in technology have also accelerated the use of new business models, and ING may not be successful in adapting to this pace of change or may incur significant costs in adapting its business and operations to meet such changes. For example, new business models have been observed in retail payments, consumer and commercial lending (such as peer-to-peer lending), foreign exchange and low-cost investment advisory services. In particular, the emergence of disintermediation in the financial sector resulting from new banking, lending and payment solutions offered by rapidly evolving incumbents, challengers and new entrants, in particular with respect to payment services and products, and the introduction of disruptive technology may impede our ability to grow or retain our market share and impact our revenues and profitability.
Increasing competition in the markets in which we operate (including from non-banks and financial technology competitors) may significantly impact our results if we are unable to match the products and services offered by our competitors. Future economic turmoil may accelerate additional consolidation activity. Over time, certain sectors of the financial services industry have become more concentrated, as institutions involved in a broad range of financial services have been acquired by or merged into other firms or have declared bankruptcy. These developments could result in our competitors gaining greater access to capital and liquidity, expanding their ranges of products and services, or gaining geographic diversity. We may experience pricing pressures as a result of these factors in the event that some of our competitors seek to increase market share by reducing prices, which may have a material adverse impact on our business, results and financial condition.
We may not always be able to protect our intellectual property developed in our products and services and may be subject to infringement claims, which could adversely impact our core business, inhibit efforts to monetise our internal innovations and restrict our ability to capitalise on future opportunities.
In the conduct of our business, we rely on a combination of contractual rights with third parties and copyright, trademark, trade name, patent and trade secret laws to establish and protect our intellectual property, which we develop in connection with our products and services. Third parties may infringe or misappropriate our intellectual property. We may have to litigate to enforce and protect our copyrights, trademarks, trade names, patents, trade secrets and know-how or to determine their scope, validity or enforceability. In that event, we may be required to incur significant costs, and our efforts may not prove successful. The inability to secure or protect our intellectual property assets could have an adverse