Annual Report - CoBank

“ From the earliest years of the bank,our cooperative roots have enabled ourdirectors to focus on the long-term healthand position of the enterprise.”continued to invest in people and technologyin order to create more value and deliver a trulysuperior customer experience.The year 2011 marked yet another transformativeevent for CoBank and its customer-owners.Our board and management team pursued andfinalized a merger with U.S. AgBank, whichdramatically expands our wholesale lendingbusiness and our roster of affiliated FarmCredit association customers. The combinedbank now has nearly $90 billion in total assets,and is firmly positioned as a leading providerof credit to the American rural economy.CoBank also recorded its 12th consecutiveyear of net income growth in 2011, despitecontinued turmoil in the global credit marketsand persistently difficult economic conditionshere in the U.S.The theme of our annual report this year –“Building for Tomorrow” – is meant to recognizeand celebrate this continuous pattern ofprogress, investment and forward-lookingchange. From the earliest years of the bank,our cooperative roots have enabled ourdirectors to focus on the long-term healthand position of the enterprise. As theU.S. AgBank merger demonstrates, thatcontinues to be true today.At the same time, CoBank’s mission andhigher purpose are the same as they alwayshave been. We remain dedicated to meetingthe needs of cooperatives, Farm Creditassociations and other businesses in vitalindustries across rural America, and to buildingour capacity to serve them effectively bothtoday and into the future.The U.S. AgBankMergerThe merger of CoBank and U.S. AgBank, whichclosed on January 1, 2012, delivers immediatevalue from a financial perspective. It diversifiesCoBank’s loan portfolio and revenue streams,builds our capital base, and enhances ouroverall lending capacity. But the real impactwill be felt over the long term. We firmly believethe combined bank will be a stronger, moredurable financial services institution, and betterpositioned to serve future generations of ruralborrowers. Dependable credit is more essentialthan ever for agriculture, for rural infrastructurecompanies, and for the other rural businesseswe finance. The merger helps ensure that theservice and value offered by CoBank areavailable not only for today’s customers,but for tomorrow’s as well.BUILDING FORTOMORROW3