Economies: Netherlands buys 8.5% of ING

... it, too, is in difficulty and it Dutch government last night agreed to pump euro10,000 million into the bank to support it.

The bank has announced that the Dutch government will take a stake amounting to 8.5% of the bank which announced on Friday that it had lost euro 500 million.

The Dutch government says it's a good investment as the bank's capital position was strong - and its share price had fallen almost 30% on Friday after the news broke. The deal takes 50% of the money the Dutch government had hypothocated for financial sector support.

But there's an underlying issue: that of governments seeking increased Tier 1 capital ratios. And it's that which is worrying ING - the UK aims to bring the capital ratio of those it has supported to just shy of 8%. Although ING is a smidgeon under 7%, that difference may well result in a credibility issue and when money starts, again, to spin around the system, that credibility will be all-important in deciding who gets the money first, fastest and cheapest.

The bank that is almost impossible to find using a Google Search (every word with "ing" in it seems to crop up before a listing for the bank appears) is a massive sponsor of Formula One, including lead sponsorship with the Renault team, receiving hugely increased coverage as the team's fortunes, unlike those of the financial sector have soared in the past few weeks as both Fernando Alonso and Nelson Piquet have pulled their cars up to the front in both qualifying and the races with Alonso winning two out of the past three Grands Prix.