ING to Sell Work From Its Collection

Financial Firm ING to Sell Work From Its Collection

AMSTERDAM—The Amsterdam-based financial-services company ING is selling works from its art collection for the first time since it was begun in 1974, reports Bloomberg.
The firm, which got a €10 billion ($14 billion) bailout from the Dutch government in October, boasts a collection of about 25,000 artworks, including pieces by Karel Appel, Michael Raedecker, and Diego Rivera, on display in 1,300 locations. It will sell about a tenth of the works, for a total estimated value of €200 million.
ING posted a loss of €478 million for the quarter that ended September 30, 2008, its first in 18 years.
The company will sell 50 artworks every week on eBay through the Netherlands Institute for Cultural Heritage. A portion of the proceeds will go to ING Chances for Children, a social-development program founded with the help of Unicef.
Annabelle Birnie, head of the collection, says that ING will continue to buy works for the collection but will “of course, take into account ING’s current financial situation” and spend “modestly.”

The ING is Sponsor of REALISME 2009 Amsterdam (14-18 January). See the post on this Blog
ING Hoofdsponsor REALISME 09
ING Collectie in Beeld in de ING stand