Low risk Treasury Rabobank Group(TRG) Long-term funding (LTF) Corporate Center (CCS) Global Financial Markets (Rl) Rabo Hypotheek Bank (RHB) Market Short-term liquidity Member Central Treasury (CT) Long-term funding Rl Commercial Units Obvion Other Group Entities (FGH) Lage Landen (DLL) banks. For example, during November 2008, GFM sales were able to place, via reverse inquiry, Rabobank bonds with French institutional accounts." Looking back over the previous eighteen months, Gower says there has been a very significant change in the nature of what it means to be a global funding business. "Prior to June 2007, the buil market essentially meant an increase in borrowing requirements was translated into an increase in price. In other words, if you needed money and were willing to pay for it, it was available. That direct correlation is no longer there. As a result, the nature of investors' requirements has also changed, because no one knows which bank may struggle in the future. Investors are now looking for much more information from borrowers about what they are doing and how they are doing it, and they are also being very picky about which underwriters they do business with." For Gower, this has meant a significant increase in the amount of face-time with investors, talking about Rabobank's position. "Every extra euro you raise today is more time and labour intensive than in the past. It often involves face-to-face dialogue, often at management-board level, with investors." However, it's Rabobank's uniquely robust position that needs to be pushed within the financial community, Gower believes. "We need to re-educate the world as to why Rabobank is low risk. Investors globally have gone back to basics and are now deeply sceptical and take nothing for granted. Credit analysis is starting over from scratch, and any large bank or borrower is being looked at very carefully. Our investor relations activities add much value in that sense. One of Rabobank's unique selling points is that we're the only triple A privately owned bank in the world. Pre-credit crunch we were placed alongside agencies, governments, and government-guaranteed agencies. We're now very much regarded as a bank - albeit the highest rated bank. However, we believe over time this will change, given the inherent low-riskof our balance sheet." With this in mind, Gower notes that Rabobank never lost access to investors during the crisis. 'This has been one of our primary successes. Even in 2008 we've achieved our volume goals. The markets recognised that over the past five years we've been a very strategie borrower that cares about how our bonds perform. We're in a strong liquidity position, meaning we're able to buy and sell our own bonds, so we can help investors get in and out of the market when they want to. So investor loyalty is significant." ISSUE 18 THE WORD

Rabobank Bronnenarchief

blad 'RI The Word / The Word' (EN) | 2009 | | pagina 33