ING bank has been ordered to give the founder of coronavirus sceptic group Viruswaarheid access to his company bank account for four months to give him time to make alternative arrangements by a court in Amsterdam.

ING blocked the business account of Willem Engel, a dance teacher by trade, in February after what it described as irregularities came to light.

In particular, ING said it had concerns about the payment of €50,000 for a piece of land in Spain, which appeared to have been funded by donations made by Viruswaarheid supporters. Engel has said that the payment was in the form of a guaranteed loan and has since been repaid.

The court ruled that Engel’s actions did raise questions but there is no concrete evidence of money laundering or other criminal activities.

In addition, the foundation’s interests – which had been threatened by the lack of access to funding – outweighed that of the bank, the court said, ordering ING to allow Engel access to the account for four months.