The merger of the Dutch postal bank and NN Insurance in 1991 created ING. Through a series of further acquisitions, ING has built up a global footprint. The 2008 financial crisis forced ING to seek government support - a precondition of which was that ING should separate its banking and insurance activities, which saw ING revert to being solely a bank. ING has market-leading banking operations in the Netherlands and Belgium, and a range of digital banks across Europe and Australia. Its global wholesale banking operation is primarily focused on lending.