Higher revenues from lending and real estate helped ING's pre-tax profits from wholesale banking rise 17% to €1.5bn ($1.9bn) despite a decline in financial markets business in the first half of the year.

Revenue growth for the first half of the year outstripped costs, which climbed 2% to €1.6bn, and pushed underlying profits before tax from wholesale banking up from €1.3bn at the halfway stage last year.