Statement from the Otto Bremer Trust

Today’s announcement describes an inappropriate plan of action on the part of Bremer Financial Corporation (BFC), one seemingly designed to serve its own litigation interests after it caused over $1 billion in losses of charitable assets in 2019. Instead, BFC’s announcement merely reinforces and clarifies the Trust’s position that it must be allowed to sell its shares.

In the wake of the pandemic, OBT helped to ensure that Paycheck Protection Plan (PPP) loans were available to nonprofits in Minnesota and throughout the region. The loans were made by the Community Reinvestment Fund, a national community development financial institution (CDFI), and OBT received nothing in return beyond the knowledge that those in most desperate need would have financial assistance during the pandemic.