Leading role in the worldwide food and agri sector
Rabobank has defined two pillars in the strategic framework 2016: in addition to market
leadership in the Netherlands, Rabobank international aims to be the leading bank in food and
agri.This means serving the entire value chain: from farmers, greenhouse horticulture businesses
and their suppliers, to processing industries and food retailers. Within the loan portfolio of
wholesale and international rural and retail banking, the share of food and agri is some 54%.
Rabobank is expecting further growth of the food and agri sector in the decades ahead.
This growth will be driven by the growth of the world's population from its current 7 billion
people to 9 billion people by 2050. Production will have to be stepped up to provide food for
the growing global population. Rabobank operates in the principal food-producing countries
throughout the world such as the Netherlands, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand and the United
States. In addition to lending, Rabobank also works to share sector knowledge and other
financial services. And Rabo Development and Rabobank Foundation are also active in regions
where food production still needs to grow strongly, such as in some parts of Africa.
The strong food and agri focus is also manifest in the customer base of Wholesale Clients
International, where the core food and agri portfolio increased further to 96% (92%) of the
portfolio. The increase in the share of food and agri is also reflected in the portfolios of
Acquisition Finance 75% (70%) and Global Client Solutions 87% (85%).
In 2013, the activities of ACCBank (Ireland) were phased down, Bank BGZ (Poland) was sold and
the equity interest in Finterra (Mexico) was reduced, while Rabobank's presence in Turkey will
be expanded by replacing a representative office by a subsidiary.
International wholesale banking
Internationally, Rabobank is a prominent financial services provider for food and agri businesses.
With a clear vision of the future of the sector, Rabobank conducts a strategic dialogue with the
senior management of internationally operating food and agri companies. Specialist knowledge
of the food chains is shared through an extensive network. The customers of Wholesale Clients
International and Trade Commodity Finance are served by Client Service Teams, which consist
of an account manager, a product specialist, a specialist in food and agri research (FAR specialist)
and, if applicable, a Mergers Acquisitions adviser. This enables sharing of specific knowledge
of the market, sector, products and the customer and an optimal customer service to be
provided.The international customer portfolio is increasingly moving towards a food and agri
portfolio as a result of growth in certain sectors and regions in recent years. The volume of
lending at the international wholesale banking division declined in 2013 by 10% to EUR 48.9 (54.1)
billion, partly due to the depreciation of various foreign currencies.
International rural and retail banking
Outside the Netherlands, the international rural and retail banking division focuses on the
financing of agricultural businesses and on 'community banking'. The agreement reached
concerning the sale of Bank BGZ has led to a decline in the loan portfolio of EUR 6.3 billion.
Moreover, the appreciation of the euro against several currencies contributed to a decline in
lending at the rural and retail banking division of 19% to EUR 31.1 (38.6) billion; in local
currency and excluding the decline due to Bank BGZ, there was actually an increase in lending
in this core business of Rabobank International. A large proportion of this rural and retail
lending is provided to customers in Australia and New Zealand, where Rabobank has had a
strong position for many years. Due to foreign currency effects, the size of this portfolio fell by
10% to EUR 14.3 (15.9) billion. In the United States, Rabobank is involved with the community
bank Rabobank N.A., which serves retail customers as well as agricultural customers, and with
Annual Report 2013 Rabobank Group
