N-30D 1 a13-1986_2n30d.htm N-30D

Annual Report

December 31, 2012

Series B

ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund

This report is submitted for general information to shareholders of the ING Funds. It is not authorized for distribution to prospective shareholders unless accompanied or preceded by a prospectus which includes details regarding the fund's investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other information. This information should be read carefully.

MUTUAL FUNDS




TABLE OF CONTENTS

President's Letter

   

1

   

Market Perspective

   

2

   

Portfolio Managers' Report

   

4

   

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

   

5

   

Statement of Assets and Liabilities

   

6

   

Statement of Operations

   

7

   

Statements of Changes in Net Assets

   

8

   

Financial Highlights

   

9

   

Notes to Financial Statements

   

10

   

Portfolio of Investments

   

13

   

Director/Trustee and Officer Information

   

14

   

PROXY VOTING INFORMATION

A description of the policies and procedures that the Trust uses to determine how to vote proxies related to portfolio securities is available: (1) without charge, upon request, by calling Shareholder Services toll-free at (800) 992-0180; (2) on the ING Funds' website at www.inginvestment.com and (3) on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's ("SEC") website at www.sec.gov. Information regarding how the Trust voted proxies related to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available without charge on the ING Funds' website at www.inginvestment.com and on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.



PRESIDENT'S LETTER

Looking Forward

Dear Shareholder,

Normally I end my letters by exhorting clients to keep their portfolios focused on long-term goals and well diversified in terms of assets and geography, and to discuss thoroughly any proposed investment changes with their financial advisors before taking action. This month, the reminders are up front to emphasize their importance as we conclude an eventful year and take a look forward.

A central theme over the past few years has been the impact government and central bank policymaking has had on economic and market outcomes. Private-sector forces, which tend to restore equilibrium in normal times, have not done enough to allow policymakers to scale back their involvement. An important reason for this is that the framework within which private-sector decisions are made requires substantial overhaul; economic and monetary ties in the euro zone need to be strengthened, the U.S. must make some difficult fiscal decisions and the success of a number of economies depends on the introduction of structural reforms.

Since the world economy is still sluggish, supportive public policies will remain critical in 2013 and beyond. However, what might we anticipate over the long term? For insight into this question, I turned to a recent report published by the National Intelligence Council — a U.S. government agency that serves as a bridge between the U.S. intelligence and policy communities — entitled "Global Trends 2030: Alternative Worlds." The report identifies four "megatrends" that the Council considers likely to emerge over the next 20 years or so. Among these are two that potentially carry implications for future investment themes. Individual empowerment will accelerate owing to growth of the global middle class, says the Council, potentially leading to a virtuous cycle of global economic expansion and creating dynamic markets for new products and technologies. Meanwhile, emerging nations will wield greater regional influence, and the health of the global economy increasingly will be linked to how well the developing world fares. This suggests that a portfolio of securities that provide exposure to developed and emerging market economies — such as ING Funds seeks to provide — may offer attractive potential for some time to come.

It's important to remember that these are projections and subject to change, but they point to the value of keeping one's portfolio well diversified to meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead.

All of us at ING Funds extend our best wishes for a happy and prosperous new year. We appreciate your continued confidence in us, and we look forward to serving your investment needs in the future.

Sincerely,

Shaun Mathews
President and Chief Executive Officer
ING Funds
January 4, 2013

The views expressed in the President's Letter reflect those of the President as of the date of the letter. Any such views are subject to change at any time based upon market or other conditions and ING Funds disclaims any responsibility to update such views. These views may not be relied on as investment advice and, because investment decisions for an ING Fund are based on numerous factors, may not be relied on as an indication of investment intent on behalf of any ING Fund. Reference to specific company securities should not be construed as recommendations or investment advice.

For more complete information, or to obtain a prospectus for any ING Fund, please call your Investment Professional or ING Investments Distributor, LLC at (800) 992-0180 or log on to www.inginvestment.com. The prospectus should be read carefully before investing. Consider the fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this information and other information about the fund. Check with your Investment Professional to determine which funds are available for sale within their firm. Not all funds are available for sale at all firms.


1



MARKET PERSPECTIVE: YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2012

In the early part of our fiscal year, global equities in the form of the MSCI World IndexSM measured in local currencies including net reinvested dividends, enjoyed the best first quarter rally since 1998. But in the two months from early April the MSCI World IndexSM slumped 11% as, for the third consecutive year, the basis of earlier optimism was undermined by events. The recovery from there was dramatic and the MSCI World IndexSM ended up 15.71% for the whole year, despite slow, patchy improvement in economic data, and investors' frustration at the futile efforts of global leaders to resolve key problems. It came because central banks, by their actions, made risky assets much more attractive. (The MSCI World IndexSM returned 15.83% for the one year ended December 31, 2012, measured in U.S. dollars.)

Much of the early upbeat sentiment rested on a sharp improvement in the employment situation, probably the most important driver of economic activity. But the improvement faded fast: the three-month average of 245,000 new jobs reported in March slumped to only 94,000 in September, before rebounding less than one third of the way to 139,000 by December. The unemployment rate was still uncomfortably high at 7.7%.

By December, other economic data, from average hourly earnings growth to consumer confidence to retail sales were mostly inconclusive. Final third quarter gross domestic product ("GDP") growth was revised up to 3.1%, but it didn't feel like it and the next few quarters were expected to show growth at about half of this level.

The housing market however, seemed clearly to be on the mend. The final S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index showed a 4.3% year-over-year gain, while new home sales in November were the highest since April 2010.

Also in the relative doldrums was China, responsible for much of global GDP growth in recent years. GDP increased by 7.4% in the third quarter of 2012 over the same quarter in 2011, the lowest rise in three years.

And yet despite the shortage of good news, the MSCI World IndexSM ended December 16% above the low point in early June. How could this be? One reason was a growing sense that the euro zone's enduring sovereign debt crisis might at last be approaching the end-game. Another was a third round of quantitative easing launched by the Federal Reserve.

In the euro zone, amid ongoing protests against fiscal austerity, a 100 billion recapitalization bailout for Spain's shaky banks was tortuously agreed upon in June. Attention returned to Greece in July where the continuation of the country's bailout rested on the outcome of an examination by creditors of its parlous fiscal state. With prospects for the euro looking increasingly tenuous, European Central Bank ("ECB") President Draghi came out on July 26 with a statement unprecedented in its explicitness, that the ECB was "ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro." Under certain conditions, the ECB would buy without limitation the 1-3 year bonds of a country in difficulties.

In September, Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke announced a third round of quantitative easing: an additional $40 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities would be purchased monthly. Then in December, "Operation Twist" was replaced by $45 billion in monthly Treasury purchases. Exceptionally low policy interest rates would remain at least until the unemployment rate fell to 6.5%.

So the year ended with central bankers sounding increasingly determined to underpin the euro and the prices of risky assets. This was enough to drive those prices higher despite dark political clouds. In Europe, inter-governmental squabbling dangerously held back agreement on Greece's next bailout tranche until November 27. In the U.S., the newly-elected Congress looked rather like the old one, and an ominous year-end cocktail of deflationary tax increases and spending cuts was forestalled by an eleventh-hour agreement on tax increases alone which postponed an even bigger conflict on spending and the debt ceiling until March.

In U.S. fixed income markets the Barclays Capital U.S. Aggregate Bond Index ("BCAB") of investment grade bonds rose 4.22% in 2012. The Barclays Capital U.S. Treasury Index, a sub-index of the BCAB, returned only 1.99% as risk appetite recovered. By contrast the Barclays Capital U.S. Corporate Investment Grade Bond Index, also a sub-index of the BCAB, rose 9.82%, while the Barclays Capital High-Yield Bond — 2% Issuer Constrained Composite Index (not part of the BCAB index) gained 15.78%.

U.S. equities, represented by the S&P 500® Index including dividends, advanced 16.00% in the fiscal year. By sector, financials led the way with a return of 28.82%, followed by consumer discretionary with a return of 23.92%. No sector incurred a loss, but defensive utilities' slim 1.29% gain reflected improved risk appetite. Operating earnings per share for S&P 500® companies set a new record in the second quarter of 2012, and barely slipped in the third.

In currency markets, the dollar fell 1.76% against the euro, which rebounded after Draghi's July pronouncements, and 4.38% against the pound, which moved in sympathy with the euro, reflecting close trade ties. But the dollar gained 12.79% over the yen in 2012, as Japan's parliamentary opposition won a landslide in December elections and promised unlimited monetary easing.

In international markets, the MSCI Japan® Index soared 21.57%, due mainly to the monetary stimulus referred to above. This was despite the effect on Japan's export focused economy of the euro zone crisis, the slowdown in China and a return to recession. The MSCI Europe ex UK® Index rose 18.78% due to central bank initiatives, in the face of economic news that was unremittingly bad, also including a return to recession and record unemployment at 11.7%. The MSCI UK® Index added 10.19%, boosted by financials but held back by large, lagging energy and materials. The U.K. GDP grew 1% in the third quarter, but this was largely due to one-time statistical anomalies.

Parentheses denote a negative number.

Past performance does not guarantee future results. The performance quoted represents past performance. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate, and shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. The Trust's performance is subject to change since the period's end and may be lower or higher than the performance data shown. Please call (800) 992-0180 or log on to www.inginvestment.com to obtain performance data current to the most recent month end.

Market Perspective reflects the views of ING's Chief Investment Risk Officer only through the end of the period, and is subject to change based on market and other conditions.


2



BENCHMARK DESCRIPTIONS

Index

 

Description

 

Barclays Capital High Yield Bond — 2% Issuer Constrained Composite Index

 

An unmanaged index that includes all fixed-income securities having a maximum quality rating of Ba1, a minimum amount outstanding of $150 million, and at least one year to maturity.

 

Barclays Capital U.S. Aggregate Bond Index

 

An unmanaged index of publicly issued investment grade U.S. Government, mortgage-backed, asset-backed and corporate debt securities.

 

Barclays Capital U.S. Corporate Investment Grade Bond Index

 

An unmanaged index consisting of publicly issued, fixed rate, nonconvertible, investment grade debt securities.

 

Barclays Capital U.S. Treasury Index

 

An unmanaged index that includes public obligations of the U.S. Treasury. Treasury bills, certain special issues, such as state and local government series bonds (SLGs), as well as U.S. Treasury TIPS and STRIPS, are excluded.

 

MSCI Japan® Index

 

A free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure developed market equity performance in Japan.

 

MSCI Europe ex UK® Index

 

A free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure developed market equity performance in Europe, excluding the UK.

 

MSCI UK® Index

 

A free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure developed market equity performance in the UK.

 

MSCI World IndexSM

 

An unmanaged index that measures the performance of over 1,400 securities listed on exchanges in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the Far East.

 

S&P 500® Index

 

An unmanaged index that measures the performance of securities of approximately 500 large-capitalization companies whose securities are traded on major U.S. stock markets.

 

S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index

 

A composite index of the home price index for the top 20 Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the United States. The index is published monthly by Standard & Poor's.

 


3




ING CORPORATE LEADERS TRUST FUND

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS' REPORT

Portfolio Management Team: The portfolio is not actively managed.

Goal: ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund (the "Trust") seeks long term capital growth and income through investment generally in an equal number of shares of the common stock of a fixed list of American blue-chip corporations.

Performance: For the year ended December 31, 2012, the Trust provided a total return of 13.21% compared to the S&P 500® Index, which returned 16.00% for the same period.

Portfolio Specifics: The Trust lagged the benchmark over the past 12 months, because of the Trust's structural overweight to the weak energy and utilities sectors and underweight in top-performing financials. In the energy sector Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. detracted the most, but the relative losses were partially offset by an overweight in Marathon Petroleum, which almost doubled in value. Among the utilities, an overweight in Consolidated Edison, which declined in value over the year, was the main drain on relative performance. In financials, the Trust's only exposure was to the lagging Berkshire Hathaway and therefore did not participate in the gains from rebounding Bank of America, Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase.

Although performance suffered from the Trust's sector allocation, it is notable that within sectors, the Trust's holdings on average, outperformed benchmark stocks. This was most pronounced in the industrials and consumer discretionary sectors. In the industrials sector Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc. and Union Pacific Corp. easily surpassed the return of the average benchmark stock, while the same was true for Comcast Corp. and CBS in the consumer discretionary sector.

Outlook and Current Strategy: We believe the U.S. economy has moved into a phase of self-sustaining, if slow, economic recovery. As we see modestly improving economic conditions, the U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) has assured the public that it is prepared to take further action to promote a stronger recovery and sustained improvement in labor market conditions. The Fed is committed to maintaining the federal funds rate near zero until the unemployment rate falls to 6.5% or inflation becomes a concern. The strength of U.S. corporations remains intact, as evidenced by significant amounts of free cash flow and record-high incremental margins. U.S. corporations are also actively returning capital to shareholders via dividend increases and share buybacks.

Sector Diversification
as of December 31, 2012

(as a percentage of net assets)

Energy

   

28.2

%

 

Industrials

   

19.8

%

 

Materials

   

14.4

%

 

Consumer Staples

   

9.4

%

 

Consumer Discretionary

   

9.0

%

 

Financials

   

8.7

%

 

Utilities

   

7.8

%

 

Telecommunication Services

   

1.6

%

 

Assets in Excess of Other Liabilities

   

1.1

%

 

Net Assets

   

100.0

%

 

Portfolio holdings are subject to change daily.

Top Ten Holdings as of December 31, 2012

(as a percentage of net assets)

ExxonMobil Corp.

   

13.4

%

 

Union Pacific Corp.

   

11.3

%

 

Praxair, Inc.

   

9.0

%

 

Chevron Corp.

   

8.8

%

 

Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.

   

8.7

%

 

Procter & Gamble Co.

   

5.5

%

 

Honeywell International, Inc.

   

4.0

%

 

Beam, Inc.

   

3.9

%

 

Consolidated Edison, Inc.

   

3.5

%

 

Marathon Petroleum Corp.

   

3.4

%

 

Portfolio holdings are subject to change daily.

Portfolio holdings and characteristics are subject to change and may not be representative of current holdings and characteristics. The outlook for this Portfolio may differ from that presented for other ING Funds. Performance for the different classes of shares will vary based on differences in fees associated with each class.


4



REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

The Participation Holders and Trustee
ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund

We have audited the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities, including the portfolio of investments, of ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund — Series "B", a series of ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund, as of December 31, 2012, and the related statement of operations for the year then ended, the statement of changes in net assets for each of the years in the two-year period then ended, and the financial highlights for each of the years in the five-year period then ended. These financial statements and financial highlights are the responsibility of management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements and financial highlights based on our audits.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of December 31, 2012 by correspondence with the custodian and brokers, or by other appropriate auditing procedures where replies from brokers were not received. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

In our opinion, the financial statements and financial highlights referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund — Series "B" as of December 31, 2012, the results of its operations for the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for each of the years in the two-year period then ended, and the financial highlights for each of the years in the five-year period then ended in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

Boston, Massachusetts
February 20, 2013


5




STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2012

ASSETS:

 

Investments in securities at value (identified cost $685,280,050)

 

$

893,562,430

   

Cash (Note 2)

   

10,779,101

   

Receivables:

 

Participations sold

   

5,800,161

   

Dividends

   

935,908

   

Prepaid expenses

   

39,692

   

Total assets

   

911,117,292

   

LIABILITIES:

 

Payable for investment securities purchased

   

1,506,206

   

Payable for participations redeemed

   

4,612,896

   

Distributions payable

   

1,552,299

   

Accrued Sponsor's maintenance fees payable

   

307,237

   

Other accrued expenses and liabilities

   

76,860

   

Total liabilities

   

8,055,498

   

NET ASSETS:

 
Balance applicable to participations at December 31, 2012, equivalent to $24.87
per participation on 36,308,682 participations outstanding
 

$

903,061,794

   

See Accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
6



STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2012

INVESTMENT INCOME:

 

Dividends

 

$

19,818,337

   

Total investment income

   

19,818,337

   

EXPENSES:

 

Sponsor maintenance fees (Note 4)

   

3,217,388

   

Transfer agent fees

   

562,919

   

Shareholder reporting expense

   

77,967

   

Registration and filing fees

   

94,550

   

Professional fees

   

131,081

   

Custody and accounting expense (Note 4)

   

70,250

   

Miscellaneous expense

   

10,127

   

Total expenses

   

4,164,282

   

Net investment income

   

15,654,055

   

REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS) ON INVESTMENTS:

 

Net realized gain on investments

   

31,097,515

   

Net change in unrealized appreciation or depreciation on investments

   

48,228,158

   

Net realized and unrealized gain on investments

   

79,325,673

   

Increase in net assets resulting from operations

 

$

94,979,728

   

See Accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
7



STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS

    Year Ended
December 31,
2012
  Year Ended
December 31,
2011
 

FROM OPERATIONS:

 

Net investment income

 

$

15,654,055

   

$

10,300,220

   

Net realized gain(loss) on investments

   

31,097,515

     

(24,724

)

 

Net change in unrealized appreciation or depreciation on investments

   

48,228,158

     

47,261,669

   

Increase in net assets resulting from operations

   

94,979,728

     

57,537,165

   

FROM DISTRIBUTIONS TO PARTICIPATIONS:

 

Net investment income

   

(15,651,734

)

   

(9,767,131

)

 

Return of capital

   

     

(721,655

)

 

Total distributions

   

(15,651,734

)

   

(10,488,786

)

 

FROM PARTICIPATION TRANSACTIONS:

 

Net proceeds from sale of participations

   

426,050,505

     

291,162,767

   

Reinvestment of distributions

   

12,839,925

     

8,647,502

   
     

438,890,430

     

299,810,269

   

Cost of participations redeemed

   

(268,670,261

)

   

(119,008,332

)

 

Net increase in net assets resulting from participation transactions

   

170,220,169

     

180,801,937

   

Net increase in net assets

   

249,548,163

     

227,850,316

   

NET ASSETS:

 

Beginning of year (period)

   

653,513,631

     

425,663,315

   

End of year (period)

 

$

903,061,794

   

$

653,513,631

   

See Accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
8




ING CORPORATE LEADERS TRUST FUND, SERIES B

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Selected data for a participation outstanding throughout each year.

   

 

Year Ended December 31,

 
       

2012

 

2011

 

2010

 

2009

 

2008

 

Per Participation Operating Performance:

 

Net asset value, beginning of year

 

$

       

22.39

     

20.29

     

17.34

     

16.11

     

22.98

   

Income (loss) from investment operations:

 

Net investment income

 

$

       

0.47

*

   

0.41

     

0.34

     

0.37

*

   

0.48

   
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)
on investments
 

$

       

2.47

     

2.07

     

3.23

     

1.53

     

(7.15

)

 

Total income (loss) from investment operations

 

$

       

2.94

     

2.48

     

3.57

     

1.90

     

(6.67

)

 

Less distributions/allocations from:

 

Net investment income

 

$

       

0.46

     

0.36

     

0.37

     

0.62

     

0.20

   

Net realized gains

 

$

       

     

     

0.25

     

     

0.00

**

 

Tax return of capital

 

$

       

     

0.02

     

     

0.05

     

   

Total distributions/allocations

 

$

       

0.46

     

0.38

     

0.62

     

0.67

     

0.20

   

Net asset value, end of year

 

$

       

24.87

     

22.39

     

20.29

     

17.34

     

16.11

   

Total Return(1)

 

%

       

13.21

     

12.24

     

21.19

     

12.15

     

(29.25

)

 

Ratios and Supplemental Data:

 

Net assets, end of year (000's)

 

$

       

903,062

     

653,514

     

425,663

     

381,010

     

364,244

   

Ratios to average net assets:

 
Expenses(2)   

%

       

0.52

     

0.49

     

0.54

     

0.59

     

0.51

   
Net investment income(2)   

%

       

1.95

     

1.90

     

1.95

     

2.40

     

2.15

   

(1)  Total return is calculated assuming reinvestment of all dividends, capital gain and return of capital distributions/allocations at net asset value.

(2)  Annualized for periods less than one year.

*  Calculated using average number of participations outstanding throughout the period.

**  Amount is less than $0.005.

See Accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
9




NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2012

NOTE 1 — NATURE OF BUSINESS AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

ING Corporate Leaders Trust Fund (the "Trust"), is an unincorporated Unit Investment Trust registered as such with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Series B commenced operations in 1941 as a series of the Trust, which was created under a Trust Indenture dated November 18, 1935, as amended.

The Trust seeks long-term capital growth and income through investment in common stocks of a fixed list of American blue chip corporations.

The Trust is comprised of a Trust Fund ("Trust Fund") and a Distributive Fund ("Distributive Fund"). The Trust Fund is composed of stock units, each unit consisting of one share of common stock of each of the twenty-two corporations (except with respect to shares received from spin-offs or mergers of existing portfolio securities — see discussion below) and such cash as may be available for the purchase of stock units. Cash received on sales of participations (excluding the portion thereof, if any, attributable to the value of, and therefore deposited in, the Distributive Fund), including distributions by the Trust which are reinvested in additional participations under the Distribution Reinvestment Program ("Distribution Reinvestment Program") described herein, is held in the Trust Fund without interest until receipt of sufficient cash to purchase at least one hundred stock units. To the extent monies remain uninvested in the Trust, the Bank of New York Mellon ("the Trustee") serving as Trustee for the Trust, will derive a benefit therefrom.

All dividends and any other cash distributions received by the Trust with respect to the common stock held in the Trust Fund are deposited in the Distributive Fund. Any non-cash distributions received by the Trust with respect to the common stock held in the Trust Fund (excluding additional shares of common stock received upon a stock split which shall remain assets of the Trust Fund) are sold by the Trustee and the proceeds of sale are deposited in the Distributive Fund. The Trustee may invest the funds deposited in the Distributive Fund in debt obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities, or in repurchase agreements collateralized by such U.S. government obligations, which mature prior, and as close as practicable, to the next Distribution Date ("Distribution Date"). The interest earned on such investments is also deposited in the Distributive Fund. Fees and expenses of the Trust are paid from the Distributive Fund. The Trustee may from time to time set aside out of the Distributive Fund a reserve for payments of taxes or other governmental charges.

On each Distribution Date, the Trustee uses the money in the Distributive Fund to purchase additional participations for participants under the Distribution Reinvestment Program unless the participant has elected to receive his distribution in cash.

NOTE 2 — SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The following is a summary of significant accounting policies followed by the Trust in the preparation of its financial statements:

A.  Valuation of Securities. All investments in securities are recorded at their estimated fair value, as described below. Investments are stated at value based on the last sale price on the principal exchange on which the security is traded prior to the time the Trust's assets are valued. Investments for which no sale is reported, or which are traded over-the-counter, are valued at the mean between bid and ask prices. Portfolio securities reported by NASDAQ will be valued at NASDAQ Official Closing Price on the valuation day.

Fair value is defined as the price that the Trust would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Each investment asset or liability of the Trust is assigned a level at measurement date based on the significance and source of the inputs to its valuation. Quoted prices in active markets for identical securities are classified as "Level 1," inputs other than quoted prices for an asset or liability that are observable are classified as "Level 2" and unobservable inputs, including the sub-adviser's judgment about the assumptions that a market participant would use in pricing an asset or liability are classified as "Level 3." The inputs used for valuing securities are not necessarily an indication of the risks associated with investing in those securities. A table summarizing the Trust's investments under these levels of classification is included following the Portfolio of Investments. For the year ended December 31, 2012, there have been no significant changes to the fair valuation methodologies.

B.  Income Taxes. No provision for federal income taxes is made since the Trust, under applicable provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, is treated as a Grantor Trust and all its income is taxable to the holders of participations. Management has considered the sustainability of the Trust's tax positions taken on federal income tax returns for all open tax years in making this determination. At


10



NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2012 (CONTINUED)

NOTE 2 — SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)

December 31, 2012, the cost of the Trust's portfolio of investments for tax purposes was $685,280,050.

As of December 31, 2012, the tax basis net unrealized appreciation of portfolio securities was $208,282,380, comprised of unrealized appreciation of $216,244,704 and unrealized depreciation of $7,962,324.

As of December 31, 2012, no provision for income tax would be required in the Trust's financial statements as a result of tax positions taken on federal and state income tax returns for open tax years. The Trust's federal and state income and federal excise tax returns for tax years for which the applicable statutes of limitations have not expired are subject to examination by the Internal Revenue Service and state department of revenue.

C.  Distributions to Participation Holders. Semi-annual distributions will be reinvested at net asset value in additional participations of the Trust unless the Participant notifies the Trustee to pay such distributions in cash.

D.  Security Transactions & Revenue Recognition. Cost of the investment securities, as well as realized security gains and losses are based on the identified average cost basis. Investment transactions are recorded on the trade date basis. Dividend income is recorded on the ex-dividend date. Interest income is accrued as earned.

E.  Accounting Estimates. The preparation of financial statements in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles for investment companies requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of increases and decreases in net assets from operations during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

F.  Restricted Cash. All cash held in the distributable fund throughout the period is intended solely for distributions.

G.  Indemnifications. In the normal course of business, the Trust may enter into contracts that provide certain indemnifications. The Trust's maximum exposure under these arrangements is dependent on future claims that may be made against the Trust and, therefore, cannot be estimated;

however, based on experience, management considers the risk of loss from such claims remote.

NOTE 3 — DISTRIBUTIONS/ALLOCATIONS

For the year ended December 31, 2012, distributions from net investment income were $15,651,734, equivalent to $0.46 per participation. For the year ended December 31, 2011, distributions from net investment income were $9,767,131, equivalent to $0.36 per participation.

For the year ended December 31, 2012 and for the year ended December 31, 2011, there were no distributions of net realized gains.

For the year ended December 31, 2012, there were no distributions from tax return of capital, and for the year ended December 31, 2011, the distributions from tax return of capital were $721,655 equivalent to $0.02 per participation.

The distributions/allocations presented above do not reflect the reinvestment, if any, of that portion from the sale of securities (other than stock units) representing the cost of the securities sold which is distributed and then reinvested in additional participations. In addition, any gain on the sale of stock units to provide funds for the redemption of participations is non-distributable and remains a part of the Trust Fund.

Effective June 1, 1998, the Trust amended its Trust indenture requiring that additional shares of common stocks received as a result of a stock split shall remain assets of the Trust.

NOTE 4 — TRUSTEE, SPONSOR AND OTHER RELATED PARTY FEES

The Trustee receives an annual Trustee fee, as well as fees for acting as custodian and for providing portfolio accounting and record keeping services, which aggregated to $70,250 for the year ended December 31, 2012.

ING Investments, LLC (the "Sponsor") serves as sponsor to the Trust. The Trust pays a maintenance fee to the Sponsor equal, on an annual basis, to 0.40% of the average daily net assets of the Trust.

NOTE 5 — INVESTMENT TRANSACTIONS

For the year ended December 31, 2012, the cost of purchases and proceeds from sales of investment securities were $240,744,271 and $69,525,185 respectively.


11



NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2012 (CONTINUED)

NOTE 6 — SOURCE OF NET ASSETS

As of December 31, 2012, the Trust's net assets were comprised of the following amounts:

Capital contributions and non-distributable
realized gains retained in Trust Fund
 

$

688,387,750

   

Net unrealized appreciation in value of securities

   

208,282,380

   

Trust Fund

   

896,670,130

   

Distributable fund

   

6,391,664

   

Total net assets

 

$

903,061,794

   

NOTE 7 — PARTICIPATIONS ISSUED AND REDEEMED

During the periods indicated, participations were issued and redeemed as follows:

   

Number of Participations

 

  Year Ended
December 31,
2012
  Year Ended
December 31,
2011
 

Issued on payments from holders

   

17,731,275

     

13,407,253

   
Issued on reinvestment of
dividends and distributions/
allocations
   

526,863

     

385,916

   

Redeemed

   

(11,138,200

)

   

(5,586,919

)

 

Net increase

   

7,119,938

     

8,206,250

   

NOTE 8 — RESTRUCTURING PLAN

The Sponsor and ING Investments Distributor, LLC are indirect, wholly-owned subsidiaries of ING U.S., Inc. ("ING U.S."). ING U.S. is a U.S.-based financial institution whose subsidiaries operate in the retirement, investment, and insurance industries. As of December 31, 2012 ING U.S. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ING Groep N.V. ("ING Groep"), which is a global financial institution of Dutch origin, with operations in more than 40 countries.

In October 2009, ING Groep submitted a restructuring plan (the "Restructuring Plan") to the European Commission to receive approval for state aid granted to ING Groep by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in November 2008 and March 2009. To receive approval for this state aid, ING Groep was required to divest its insurance and investment management businesses, including ING U.S. by the end of 2013. In November 2012, ING Groep announced that the European Commission agreed to an amendment to the Restructuring Plan which will extend the time for the completion of the divestiture. Under the terms of the amendment, at least 25% of ING U.S. has to be divested by the end of 2013, more than 50% has to be divested by the end of 2014, with the remaining interest divested by the end of 2016. It is anticipated

that an initial public offering of a portion of the ING U.S. common stock will be conducted in 2013 as part of the Restructuring Plan. ING Groep has announced that the base case for divesting ING U.S. is an initial public offering of ING U.S. common stock, in which ING Groep anticipates selling a portion of its ownership interest in ING U.S. and thereafter divesting its remaining ownership interest over time. While the base case is an initial public offering, all options remain open and it is possible that ING Groep's divestment of ING U.S. may take place by means of a sale to a single buyer or group of buyers.

The Restructuring Plan, whether implemented through public offerings or other means, may be disruptive to the businesses of ING U.S. and its subsidiaries, including the Sponsor and affiliated entities that provide services to the Trust, and may cause, among other things, interruption of business operations or services, diversion of management's attention from day-to-day operations, reduced access to capital, and loss of key employees or customers. Completion of the Restructuring Plan is expected to result in the Sponsor's loss of access to the resources of ING Groep, which could adversely affect its business. Currently, the Sponsor does not anticipate that the Restructuring Plan will have an adverse impact on its operations or the operations of the Trust.

During the time that ING Groep retains a controlling interest in ING U.S., circumstances affecting ING Groep, including restrictions or requirements imposed on ING Groep and its subsidiaries, including ING U.S. and the Sponsor, by U.S., European and other authorities, may negatively affect ING U.S. and the Sponsor. For example, restrictions on activities of entities controlled by ING Groep, including ING U.S. and the Sponsor, could be imposed under U.S., European or other laws or regulations, as a result of activities engaged in by ING Groep and its subsidiaries over which ING U.S. and the Sponsor have no control.

NOTE 9 — SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

The Trust has evaluated events occurring after the Statement of Assets and Liabilities date (subsequent events) to determine whether any subsequent events necessitated adjustment to or disclosure in the financial statements. No such subsequent events were identified.


12




ING CORPORATE LEADERS   PORTFOLIO OF INVESTMENTS
TRUST PORTFOLIO — SERIES B  
AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2012

Shares

 
 
 

Value

  Percentage of
Net Assets
 

COMMON STOCK: 98.9%

 
       

Consumer Discretionary: 9.0%

     
 

465,945

           

CBS Corp. - Class B

 

$

17,729,207

     

2.0

   
 

551,628

            Comcast Corp. -
Class A
   

20,619,855

     

2.3

   
 

571,745

           

Foot Locker, Inc.

   

18,364,449

     

2.0

   
 

465,945

           

Viacom - Class B

   

24,573,939

     

2.7

   
                         

81,287,450

     

9.0

   
       

Consumer Staples: 9.4%

     
 

571,745

           

Beam, Inc.

   

34,927,902

     

3.9

   
 

735,945

           

Procter & Gamble Co.

   

49,963,306

     

5.5

   
                         

84,891,208

     

9.4

   
       

Energy: 28.2%

     
 

737,345

           

Chevron Corp.

   

79,736,488

     

8.8

   
 

1,396,645

           

ExxonMobil Corp.

   

120,879,625

     

13.4

   
 

766,045

           

Marathon Oil Corp.

   

23,486,940

     

2.6

   
 

487,826

            Marathon
Petroleum Corp.
   

30,733,038

     

3.4

   
                         

254,836,091

     

28.2

   
       

Financials: 8.7%

     
 

875,237

     

@

    Berkshire
Hathaway, Inc.
   

78,508,759

     

8.7

   
       

Industrials: 19.8%

     
 

571,745

     

@

    Fortune Brands
Home &
Security, Inc.
   

16,706,389

     

1.9

   
 

1,107,545

           

General Electric Co.

   

23,247,370

     

2.6

   
 

571,745

            Honeywell
International, Inc.
   

36,288,655

     

4.0

   
 

814,645

           

Union Pacific Corp.

   

102,417,169

     

11.3

   
                         

178,659,583

     

19.8

   

Shares

 
 
 

Value

  Percentage of
Net Assets
 
       

Materials: 14.4%

 
 

717,712

           

Dow Chemical Co.

 

$

23,196,452

     

2.6

   
 

571,745

            EI Du Pont de
Nemours & Co.
   

25,711,373

     

2.8

   
 

745,245

           

Praxair, Inc.

   

81,567,065

     

9.0

   
                         

130,474,890

     

14.4

   
       

Telecommunication Services: 1.6%

 
 

430,142

           

AT&T, Inc.

   

14,500,087

     

1.6

   
       

Utilities: 7.8%

 
 

571,745

           

Ameren Corp.

   

17,564,007

     

2.0

   
 

571,745

            Consolidated
Edison, Inc.
   

31,754,717

     

3.5

   
 

847,153

           

NiSource, Inc.

   

21,085,638

     

2.3

   
                         

70,404,362

     

7.8

   
                Total Common Stock
(Cost $685,280,050)
   

893,562,430

     

98.9

   
                Assets in Excess of
Other Liabilities
   

9,499,364

     

1.1

   
               

Net Assets

 

$

903,061,794

     

100.0

   

@  Non-income producing security

Cost for federal income tax purposes is the same as for financial statement purposes.

Net unrealized appreciation consists of:

 

Gross Unrealized Appreciation

 

$

216,244,704

   

Gross Unrealized Depreciation

   

(7,962,324

)

 

Net Unrealized Appreciation

 

$

208,282,380

   

Fair Value Measurements^

The following is a summary of the fair valuations according to the inputs used as of December 31, 2012 in valuing the assets and liabilities:

    Quoted Prices
in Active Markets
for Identical
Investments
(Level 1)
  Significant
Other
Observable
Inputs
(Level 2)
  Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
(Level 3)
  Fair Value
at
12/31/2012
 

Asset Table

 

Investments, at fair value

 

Common Stock*

 

$

893,562,430

   

$

   

$

   

$

893,562,430

   

Total Investments, at fair value

 

$

893,562,430

   

$

   

$

   

$

893,562,430

   

^  See Note 2, "Significant Accounting Policies" in the Notes to Financial Statements for additional information.

*  For further breakdown of Common Stock by Industry type, please refer to the Portfolio of Investments.

See Accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
13



DIRECTOR/TRUSTEE AND OFFICER INFORMATION (UNAUDITED)

The Bank of New York Mellon serves as Trustee for the Trust. The Trust does not have a Board of Directors/Trustees nor does it have any Officers.


14




Sponsor

ING Investments, LLC
7337 East Doubletree Ranch Road, Suite 100
Scottsdale, Arizona 85258

Administrator

ING Funds Services, LLC
7337 East Doubletree Ranch Road, Suite 100
Scottsdale, Arizona 85258

Distributor

ING Investments Distributor, LLC
7337 East Doubletree Ranch Road, Suite 100
Scottsdale, Arizona 85258

Transfer Agent

BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (U.S.) Inc.
301 Bellevue Parkway
Wilmington, Delaware 19809

Trustee/Custodian

The Bank of New York Mellon
One Wall Street
New York, New York 10286

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

KPMG LLP
Two Financial Center
60 South Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02111

Legal Counsel

Dechert LLP
1900 K Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006

Before investing, carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the variable annuity contract and the underlying variable investment options. This and other information is contained in the prospectus for the variable annuity contract and the underlying variable investment options. Obtain these prospectuses from your agent/registered representative and read them carefully before investing.

AR-CLTB (1212-021513)