Second-tier lender has 'unwavering support' of brokers, says head of mortgages George Thompson
ING Australia has enjoyed something of a redemption arc in 2025.
After four years, the second-tier lender has reclaimed its spot from Bendigo and Adelaide Bank as the sixth-largest mortgage lender in Australia, behind only the Big Four (Commonwealth Bank, NAB, ANZ and Westpac) and Macquarie Bank.
It remains a tight race.
According to Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) statistics, ING’s combined book of owner-occupied and investor loans totaled $66.47 billion in June 2025, compared to Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s $64.95 billion.
For George Thompson, head of mortgages at ING Australia, being able to reclaim that spot “is testament to the commitment that we've shown to the broker channel, the unwavering support that we have to brokers and customers alike”.
“The consistency of what we're now showing in market, particularly in the last 18 months” has propelled ING’s growth, Thompson added in a conversation with MPA at last week’s MFAA Growth Summit.
With some 95% of ING’s loans originating via the third party channel, there is no doubt that the online-only subsidiary of the Dutch multinational relies heavily on brokers to drive this growth.
The strategy seems to be working. Between May 2025 and June 2025, ING grew its loan book by 1.57%, outpacing each of the Big Four banks, though failing to match Macquarie’s bullish 2.31% growth spurt.
On a year-on-year basis, ING’s mortgage book grew by more than 11% – safely outperforming the Big Four’s average of less than 5% and besting Bendigo & Adelaide Bank’s 7.8%.
Part of ING statistical outperformance, reckons Thomson, comes down to being a digital-only lender.
“We haven't operated branches in this market, nor do we intend to, and that's allowed us to have a sustainable competitive advantage,” he said.
But, he added, it’s not just about rates. “Brokers are looking for lenders that are able to meet their clients’ needs. Rate is important, but what's more important is a lender that's able to provide a facility for that person's situation.”
Early days for diversification
When MPA caught up with ING’s head of business banking Hein Wegdam in April, he went into depth about the bank’s designs to expand its business-lending footprint.
“We have over two million retail customers, many of whom are small business owners,” Wegdam said at the time. “The demand is coming from them, they want to be able to do all their banking in one place and we want to support them.”
Returning to the matter with Thompson, he said it is “still very early days, but SME lending is growing in line with our expectations”.
He added that his team “is in continuous dialogue with the broker network, gathering insights and customer feedback to fully build out our plans within the business bank”.
It sounds like a multi-year strategy for ING, rather than a near-term development. But as a broker-focus lender, there could be pressure on ING to present a diverse product offering to a broker market that is seeing an ever-increasing rate of diversification itself.
As evidenced by the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia (MFAA)’s latest Industry Intelligence Service report, brokers are writing commercial loans at a record pace.
The July report revealed that the number of brokers writing commercial loans was up over 24% year on year as of September 2024.
A record 7,000 brokers wrote commercial loans through their aggregator in the period, with the settled value of commercial loans reaching nearly $23 billion (up 31.2% year on year).
ING will undoubtedly be eager to tap further into this lucrative market.
However, the real impetus is likely to be on maintaining a competitive offering in what Thompson acknowledges is a “very competitive landscape in the Australian banking market”.
Nothing like a bit of healthy competition
“Competition is good in any industry,” Thompson said. “Where you have a home loan market that has almost a three-quarter share sitting with major banks but concurrently three quarters of home loans written by brokers, that presents a competitive dynamic that is fundamentally good for Australians.”
Australians “have choice”, said Thompson. “Brokers are able to identify the best borrower for their needs and their situation, and there are a whole host of non-majors and other lenders that are able to service those needs.”
As the sixth-largest mortgage lender in the market, ING must be doing something right.
Norfina (aka Suncorp Bank), BOQ and HSBC (which is rumoured to be seeking to divest its Australian operations) rounded out the 10 biggest mortgage lenders in June 2025, per APRA data.
