ING combines commodity trade finance teams, names new division head

LONDON (Reuters) - Dutch bank ING has reorganised its trade finance divisions and appointed Maarten Koning as its new global lead of trade and commodity finance, the bank said on Tuesday.

The bank is bringing its structured commodity finance (SCF) units in Geneva and Asia into the trade and commodity finance (TCF) division.

Koning will run the newly combined division out of Geneva. He joined ING in 2001 and was global head of SCF until the new appointment. Koning succeeds Anthony van Vliet, who recently took on the role of head of Know Your Customer (KYC) for ING Wholesale Banking.

ING is one of the lead banks in financing the trade of oil, metals and agricultural products. The commodity trading world was shaken this year after a series of major trade house defaults, largely in Asia, that prompted internal reviews at many top banks.

Dutch lender ABN Amro, a giant in commodity trade finance, shocked the market in August when it announced its withdrawal from the area. BNP Paribas that had already downsized its presence said in September it was closing its Swiss commodity trade finace business.

(Reporting by Julia Payne, editing by Louise Heavens)