Company: AGM-PH
Filing Date: 2025-02-21
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000845877-25-000033
Chunk: 203

Company: FEDERAL AGRICULTURAL MORTGAGE CORP
Filing Date: 2025-02-21
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 7
Chunk 203
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 contributed to positive Farm & Ranch loan purchase portfolio growth in 2024. Future changes in monetary policy, sustained elevated product interest rates, and the financial health of borrowers are anticipated to influence the demand for Agricultural Finance mortgage loans and the pace of repayments. Farmer Mac experienced a decrease in wholesale finance volume during 2024, driven by slower market loan growth and a tightening of market credit spreads that resulted in less liquidity and diversification needs from our counterparties. Any future growth will likely be influenced by market interest rates and credit spreads, overall economic conditions and loan growth opportunities, and the relative value of Farmer Mac’s products versus the broader market. Corporate AgFinance loan purchases and unfunded commitments increased 14.4% in 2024 versus 2023. The Infrastructure Finance segments showed significant business volume growth in 2024, increasing over $1 billion, or 13.3%, to $9.0 billion in 2024 versus 2023. Business volume in Infrastructure Finance was strong across most products and segments in 2024, primarily driven by increased financing activity for renewable energy projects and broadband infrastructure in response to continued strong demand for renewable power generation and storage and data center investments. 

Opportunities for profitable future growth include Farmer Mac's potential role in alleviating liquidity, capital, and return-on-equity capital challenges faced by agricultural and infrastructure lenders. The suite of Farmer Mac's offerings encompasses loan and loan portfolio purchases, participations, guarantees, LTSPCs, wholesale funding, and securitizations. In 2024, Farmer Mac purchased from a single agricultural lender two pools of Farm & Ranch loans with an aggregate outstanding principal balance of $179.2 million. Ongoing business and product development efforts continue to attract institutional investors and nontraditional lenders, resulting in the diversification of Farmer Mac's customer base and product set, potentially generating increased product demand from new sources. Farmer Mac’s expanded loan servicing capabilities enhance our loan portfolio purchase value proposition, adding new product offerings to an increasingly diverse customer base. 

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Growing relationships with larger agriculture lenders, financial industry consolidation, interest rates and market volatility, as well as financial institutions' focus on capital efficiency and liquidity continue to provide increased opportunities for Farmer Mac, influencing the demand for loan purchases, risk management solutions, and wholesale funding. Any such growth may lead to an increase in the average transaction size within Farmer Mac’s lines of business. The financing needs arising from mergers, acquisitions, consolidation, and vertical integration in the agricultural and infrastructure industries present further opportunities for Farmer Mac