ING pays €1.6 million in the Reynders case
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7 May 2026 •
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ING has reached a settlement of €1.6 million in a case of alleged money laundering involving former European Commissioner Didier Reynders.
A bank looking to turn the page
A new development in the money laundering case linked to Didier Reynders: ING has agreed to pay €1.6 million as part of a settlement reached with the Brussels Public Prosecutor’s Office. This settlement brings an end to the proceedings against the bank. For ING, the case is now a thing of the past. The bank wishes to close an embarrassing case in which it was suspected of failing to report financial transactions deemed suspicious.
The Brussels Public Prosecutor’s Office had opened an investigation into ING in April of the previous year, as part of the case concerning Didier Reynders. The bank was not accused of being behind the financial transactions, but of failing to fulfil its duty of care. In cases of this kind, banks play a decisive role. They must monitor suspicious transactions, particularly where large sums are involved, repeated cash deposits or transactions whose economic origin appears difficult to explain.
That does not mean the case is over. The settlement concerns ING, not Didier Reynders. The former European Commissioner for Justice remains the subject of an investigation.
Two former bank employees have also been interviewed in connection with the case. The public prosecutor’s office has yet to decide on their cases.
Didier Reynders, cash deposits and lottery tickets
Didier Reynders is alleged to have purchased National Lottery tickets in cash over a period of several years. The winnings are said to have been paid into his bank account.
The former politician is also alleged to have deposited large sums of cash into his ING account over a long period. The bank was implicated for failing to report 245 cash deposits and 779 transfers linked to online lottery transactions. In total, these transactions amounted to over €1 million.
Didier Reynders has served as European Commissioner for Justice since 2019. Prior to that, he held ministerial posts in Belgium for twenty years, notably at the Ministry of Finance. According to reports, the judicial authorities are said to have waited until the end of his term of office, on 1 December 2024, to proceed with the investigation. On that date, Didier Reynders lost the legal protection associated with his role as European Commissioner. The public prosecutor’s office had received information from the National Lottery as well as from a unit responsible for reporting suspicious transactions.
The agreement reached by ING closes part of the case, but it does not put an end to the questions. The former European Commissioner remains under scrutiny by the Belgian judicial authorities.