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NewsMay 4 2011

Obituary: Bert Heemskerk

Bert Heemskerk, the former executive board chairman of Rabobank, has died following a brief illness
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Obituary: Bert HeemskerkBert Heemskerk, former executive board chairman of Rabobank

Mr Heemskerk was passionate about the co-operative banking model and the concept of sustainable banking long before the latter became fashionable.

As someone who studied theology and philosophy in his early life, as well as economics, he had a broad view of the world. I remember him as a very engaging lunch companion who was happy to talk about anything and everything.

Mr Heemskerk, who was born in Noordwijkerhout, the Netherlands, in 1943, began his banking career at the former Amro Bank and considered his appointment as Rabobank chairman in 2002 as the crowning achievement of his career. He was due to retire in 2007 but stayed on until 2009 to steer Rabobank through the financial crisis, even though the bank’s exposures were limited and it always retained its AAA rating.

Current chairman Piet Moerland said Mr Heemskerk quickly emerged as a passionate chairman with a strong co-operative mindset. “He discovered much to his own surprise that co-operative banking really does exist.”

He was involved in the inception of Rabo Development that develops promising rural banks in Asia, Africa and Latin America based on the Rabobank model and was enthusiastic about the work of the Rabobank Foundation, the bank’s social fund that is active in developing countries in microfinance. His book on sustainable banking is called Healthy Contraction.

Mr Heemskerk made a huge contribution to banking and will be sadly missed by former colleagues, family and friends.

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