'ING pressured suppliers to cut bills'

Monday 15 February 2010

Financial services group ING last summer put suppliers under pressure to make rebates of 12% on bills which had already been paid, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Monday.

If the suppliers refused, they were threatened with a stop on future contracts, the paper says. It bases the claim on a leaked copy of the agreement between ING and its suppliers.

'I felt I was being blackmailed but the bank is an important client and I agreed under protest,' one supplier told the paper.

A bank spokesman acknowledged there had been tough talks about the discount request but said suppliers were free to refuse.

Last month it emerged ABN Amro had also pressured suppliers to retroactively cut their bills.

© DutchNews.nl

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