candidacy was at the recommendation of the General Meeting. The Supervisory Board highly
appreciates this involvement of the General Meeting and the Works Council.
Keeping informed of developments
The Chairman of the Supervisory Board has close contacts with the Chairman of the Executive
Board and holds monthly meetings with the internal auditor and the Group Compliance
Officer. In addition, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board, the Chairman of the Audit
Compliance Committee, the external auditor and the internal auditor meet at least four times
a year. During the year under review, the members of the Supervisory Board regularly attended,
as observers, meetings of Rabobank Nederland's Works Council and of the Group Works
Council of Member Banks, as well as the Regional and Central Delegates Assembly. This
enables the Supervisory Board to keep up to date with the interests of Rabobank Nederland's
major stakeholders. In 2009, as part of their periodic learning, the members of the Supervisory
Board gained information on the causes of the financial crisis and its financial economic effects,
the prospects for the economy, the consequences of the International Financial Reporting
Standards (IFRS) for financial reporting, the implications of IFRS in the context of the financial
crisis and the recognition of pensions in the financial statements.
Meetings
The Supervisory Board met eight times in 2009. Not one member was repeatedly absent
from those meetings. The Supervisory Board has five committees. The Audit Compliance
Committee met nine times, the Appeals Committee met twice and the Cooperative Issues
Committee, the Appointments Committee and the Remuneration Committee each met
four times in 2009.
Committees of the Supervisory Board
Members Audit Compliance Committee
M. Minderhoud, Chairman The Audit Compliance Committee performs preparatory work for the Supervisory Board's
L. Koopmans, permanent member decision-making on the supervision of the management offinancial issues, ICT and
B. Bijvoet compliance-related issues.
A.w. Veenman In the year under review, the Audit Compliance Committee performed preparatory work
C.P. Veerman for the Supervisory Board's decision-making on the annual report and accounts for 2008, the
AJ.A.M. Vermeer interim report and accounts for 2009 and the budget for 2010. The Audit Compliance
Committee gained in-depth information about the developments in the financial markets,
paying particular attention to such subjects as trends in Rabobank Group's results, solvency
and liquidity, financial impairments, operation of the control and management mechanisms,
concentration risk and systemic risk, opportunities to attract funding, the rating development
and the policy on debit and credit interest rates. The Audit Compliance Committee closely
considered the lessons learned from the financial crisis. It also considered developments in the
banking landscape resulting from the financial crisis, and the changes in the financial sector and
its supervision. It held exploratory talks on the announced changes to the financial regulations
concerning such matters as capital requirements and liquidity. At the Executive Board's
invitation, the Audit Compliance Committee also acted as a sounding board for the Executive
Board regarding the whole of all these developments and associated strategic options.
Other subjects considered by the Audit Compliance Committee included the monthly
figures and quarterly reports on Rabobank Group's financial development, the funding mandate
for 2009 and 2010, the solvency requirements at Rabobank International and at subsidiaries
and the reports on weaknesses in the control over financial reporting. The Audit Compliance
Committee approved the 2010 Group Audit Plan, issued a positive advice on the adjustment
of the Rabobank Audit's Charter, and reviewed the internal accountants' (Group Audit)
quarterly reports.
Further, the Audit Compliance Committee reviewed the Compliance Department's interim
reports. It paid special attention to the improvements implemented by Rabobank in the context
of its duty of care to private clients. Other subjects reviewed were: credit policy assurance
within Rabobank's organisation, the financial situation in inland water transport and in
greenhouse horticulture and the Member Banks annual plan for 2010. In accordance with its
terms of reference, the Audit Compliance Committee also discussed developments within
Rabobank Group in the area of ICT and gained information about the policy on Rabobank
Group's tax planning.
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Report 2009 Rabobank Group
