ING DIRECT president and CEO Arkadi Kuhlmann is not your typical bank executive.

Kuhlmann, 61, has lived up to his reputation as a “;rebel with a cause”; due to his unconventional approach to banking - offering customers saving accounts with high-interest rates and no minimums. His philosophy has always been that saving money and investing should be as simple as having a cup of coffee.

Kuhlmann was on hand yesterday evening for a seminar on achieving financial independence.

He expounded on everything from the current mortgage crisis and credit card defaults to the state of the U.S. automobile industry and China's future challenges.

The “;CEO of Savings”; offered 10 simple rules for saving that every family should follow during these tough economic times.

Among the “;We, the Savers”; pledge are simple credos like, “;We will spend less than we earn”; and “;We will know the cost of borrowing.”;

The online bank opened its first Waikiki Cafe last week and held a grand opening Sunday at the former Local Motion store at 1958 Kalakaua Ave. It is expecting an average of between 500 to 600 people to walk in daily, although all of ING DIRECT's banking takes place online, over the phone or by mail.

Already, the bank has a base of about 25,000 customers in Hawaii, many of which joined ING DIRECT before its cafe opened in Waikiki. Approximately 51 percent are female, 50 percent male, spanning the age spectrum.

Younger customers embrace the convenience of online banking, said Kuhlmann, while seniors are happy with the high interest rates.

Besides a full-service cafe serving espresso drinks, there are pastries from Panya Bistro. ING DIRECT is also offering a meeting space for nonprofit and community groups.

Honolulu's Kalakaua Avenue cafe joins the ranks of other ING DIRECT Cafes in Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia. St. Cloud, Minn., Wilmington, Del., and Chicago.

The Honolulu cafe, which occupies 9,566 square feet, is the largest in the U.S.

The cafe features an ocean theme highlighted by a 1930s custom outrigger canoe on loan from the Friends of Hokule'a. A broadcast studio is also available, along with free Wi-Fi and Internet kiosks, where customers can do their banking.

A team of 12 business development associates can serve up a latte as well rattle off the financial products available at ING DIRECT.

ING DIRECT's trademark logo is orange, which is also the theme of all of its banking products, which include the Electric Orange (a paperless checking account), Orange Savings Account, Orange Certificate of Deposit and Orange Home Equity and Orange Mortgage.

The online bank, based in Delaware, claims to be the sixth largest online broker in the U.S., with $81 billion in assets and 7.3 million customers in the U.S.