Growing markets
in the US
As the world welcomed the new year, Rl had its own
reasons to celebrate: two major acquisitions in US Food
and Agribusiness in 2003. With Lend Lease Agri-Business
coming on board in September and Ag Services of
America in December, Rl has taken a big leap forward in
tackling this rich, powerful market. We are well on our
way to achieving strong growth in the US with the best
in farm and erop financing now on offer.
Spearheaded by Cor Broekhuijse,
Regional Manager Americas, the 'coun
try banking' strategy in the US began with
the 2002 acquisition of VIB, which offered
Rabobank access to the biggest agricultur-
al market in the world, California. But
VIB's retail banking product range was
only the start. 'In order to build a top
position in the agricultural market,'
Broekhuijse explains, 'you need to be
very good at financing crops, and provide
long-term credit for financing farm real
estate. We found these things in Lend
Lease and Ag Services. Now, we're able to
offer retail, short-term erop finance, and
mortgage services to the US farmer.'
The Word I
