ING Hires Cruz to Lead Individual Retirement Investor Channel

WINDSOR, Conn., March 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- ING has named Orlando R. Cruz as president of its Individual Retirement Investor Channel.  ING Individual Retirement is the company's U.S. individual retirement business that offers personal retirement investment and income guidance and solutions to pre-retirees, retirees and the overall rollover market. As head of its Investor Channel, Cruz will lead a team responsible for providing phone-based guidance and support to both new and existing ING customers looking for help with their retirement savings and income needs.  He will report to ING Individual Retirement CEO Lynne Ford.

Cruz joins ING from Wells Fargo, where he most recently served as senior vice president and head of internal retirement consultant program for its Retail Retirement Group. In this capacity he led a team of individuals who were the "advisors' advisor" for retirement and guaranteed income planning.

"Orlando is a talented executive who brings extensive management and sales experience in the retail retirement arena," said Ford.  "His leadership and background will be great assets to ING as we look to expand our offerings and help more Americans achieve their retirement goals."

Cruz held a number of management and sales positions while spending more than 20 years at Wells Fargo and its predecessor companies.  Prior to his role as senior vice president and director of the internal retirement consultant program, he was national sales manager of offshore products and Southern Divisional sales manager of the field-based retirement consultant program; he has also served as director of global and intermediary distribution.  He has extensive experience with retirement and insurance product distribution in the U.S., Latin America and Europe as well as experience with institutional products, including 401(K) retirement plans.

Cruz earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Miami, and a certificate from SIFMA's Securities Industry Institute at The Wharton School.  He is a general securities principal and investment advisory representative holding FINRA Series 7, 9, 24 and 63 licenses.  Cruz also serves on the membership committee of the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI).

Cruz will be based at ING's Windsor, Conn., location.

About ING

ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, investments, life insurance and retirement services to over 85 million private, corporate and institutional clients in more than 40 countries. With a diverse workforce of about 107,000 people, ING is dedicated to setting the standard in helping our clients manage their financial future.

In the U.S., the ING (NYSE: ING) family of companies offer a comprehensive array of financial services to retail and institutional clients, which includes life insurance, retirement plans, mutual funds, managed accounts, alternative investments, direct banking, institutional investment management, annuities, employee benefits and financial planning.  ING holds top-tier rankings in key U.S. markets and serves nearly 30 million customers across the nation.  For more information, visit www.ing.us.

SOURCE ING