The Lexington branch of Farm Credit of the Virginias (FCV), a customer-owned financial cooperative that supports rural communities and agriculture, announced it paid just over $700,000 in cash to their customer-owners in the form of a patronage dividend.
Due to Farm Credit of the Virginias’ cooperative framework, the association returns a portion of its profits back to customer-owners on an annual basis. During 2022, increased input costs, supply chain disruptions and rising interest rates made it difficult for their customer-owners to carry out their goals for the year, said a spokesman. Nevertheless, Farm Credit of the Virginias’ financial position remained strong, he said, and its board of directors elected to return 70% of its net profits to their customer-owners, with the hope that this patronage distribution would allow their customer-owners to feel more confident in navigating the economic headwinds currently impacting the agricultural industry and our rural communities.
The Lexington branch is located at 152 Maury River Road.
