Pub. 8 2013-2014 Issue 6

March | April 2014 21 Extraordinary Service for Extraordinary Members. The merger of Stinson Morrison Hecker and Leonard, Street and Deinard offers your institution the resources of a nationally prominent legal firm delivered with the responsiveness of a neighborhood law office. We’re now known as Stinson Leonard Street, and our banking attorneys have broad experience with complex financial matters such as commercial lending, M&A, regulatory and compliance, litigation and more. You can count on us for creative, effective solutions to your most complicated deals. Trust our experience. Rely on our resources. The choice of a lawyer is important and should not be based solely on advertisements. A legal partner you can trust. Aaron B. Johnson James M. Pfeffer 402.930.1726 aaron.johnson @ stinsonleonard.com 402.930.1735 jim.pfeffer @ stinsonleonard.com Offices in Omaha; Minneapolis, Mankato and St. Cloud, Minn.; Kansas City, St. Louis and Jefferson City, Mo.; Phoenix; Denver; Washington, DC; Wichita and Overland Park, Kan.; Bismarck, N.D.; and Decatur, Ill. STINSON LEONARD STREET LLP \\ STINSONLEONARD.COM 30018 NE Banker Half Pg_HalfPg 2/18/14 9:44 AM Page 1 understand the FCAhad no knowledge of the loan until Imade it public in the October 2013 FCW. In a dramatic backwards spin, worthy of the Sochi Olympics, Stromattempted to create the impression that the FCA was awake at the wheel when this loan was made. Strom also indicated that CoBank has syndicated portions of the Verizon loan within the FCS when he referred to “its subsequent participation [of the Verizon loan] to other [FCS] institutions.” I plan to analyze FCS call reports to determine the extent to which the Verizon loan was participated to other FCS institutions. Report FCS Lending Abuses Bankers are continuing to send FCW reports of FCS lending abuses such as FCS loans for rural estates, weekend getaways, and hunting preserves. Email reports of similar lending abuses in your market to green-acres@ely-co.com . Please provide asmuch detail as possible about any loan that violates the spirit, if not the law, governing FCS lending.  To contact Bert Ely, email bert@ely-co.com , phone (703) 836-4101, fax (703) 836-1403, or send mail to P.O. Box 320700, Alexandria, Va. 22320. If your bank belongs to the American Bankers Association (ABA), you can enjoy a free email subscription to Farm Credit Watch or you can read it monthly online at www.aba.com . To receive Farm Credit Watch by email or to manage your subscription, visit ABA Member Email Bulletins at www.aba.com/Tools/Ebulletins/Pages/default.aspx. For other inquiries, please contact Barbara McCoy at the ABA at (800) BANKERS or bmccoy@aba.com .