12 mei 2022
09:57
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The Turkish Pinar Abay becomes the first female chairman of the board of directors of ING Belgium.
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The choice for Abay puts an end to a weeks-long search for a new chairman at the fourth largest bank in Belgium, to succeed Diego du Monceau, who retired. In February, it was announced that ING Belgium had selected top lawyer Hilde Laga for that position, but that appointment fell through. reported De Tijd in March† Laga will now come on board as a driver at the bank. She may eventually become president.
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With Abay, ING Belgium chooses someone who knows the bank through and through. Abay has been a member of the board of directors of ING Belgium since 2016 and has been leading the Belgian, Luxembourg and Dutch operations of the Dutch banking giant since 2020. Before that, she was CEO of ING Turkey.
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McKinsey
The 44-year-old Ankara economist began her career with consultant McKinsey, who soon sent her from Istanbul to Silicon Valley to work for a number of technology companies. While living in the United States, she also completed an MBA from Harvard Business School.
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Without any practical experience, Abay took charge of ING’s Turkish subsidiary in 2011. She built that bank into one of the most profitable in Turkey.
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In 2011, aged 34, Abay became the head of ING in Turkey, the youngest ever CEO of a Turkish bank. That raised the eyebrows of many. Because while Abay had worked for a number of banking clients during her McKinsey period, she had absolutely no hands-on experience in the industry.
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Abay carried out a major reorganization to enable the bank to better respond to the faster digitization. With success, because under her leadership ING Turkey grew into one of the most profitable banks in the country.
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Core Markets
This Turkish success did not go unnoticed by the top of ING Group, who decided in 2020 to place Abay at the head of the Belgian, Luxembourg and Dutch activities. Anything but an obvious task, because an IT project that was too ambitious, the persistently low interest rates and the aftermath of a major reorganisation, caused ING to lose ground in these core markets in recent years. Even after her appointment as chairwoman of ING Belgium, Abay will continue to lead the Benelux arm of the bank.
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With the appointment of Abay, ING Belgium will have its first female CEO in the 150-year history of the bank and its predecessors, such as BBL. The appointment of Laga strengthens the gender balance on the board of directors. It now has nine women and eight men. Two other new directors recently took office, Ronald Oort and Peter Göbel. Both are ING top managers.
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