What’s Been Happening with the Otto Bremer Trust Lately in the Upper Midwest?
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OBT’s expanding geographic focus includes eastern Wisconsin and Montana. Photo: MarynaG/shutterstock
With over a billion dollars in assets, the Otto Bremer Trust (OBT) is one of the biggest grantmakers to know in the Upper Midwest region. These assets come from a 92 percent ownership in Bremer Bank and a portfolio of investments, and they impact around 600 organizations and over 160 communities every year. For local nonprofits new to the scene or in need of some extra funding this year, here are three new things to know about the Otto Bremer Trust and its recent activities.
An Expanding Geographic Scope
In 2019, OBT awarded $56,845,772 in grants and program-related investments to support over 650 organizations in its home region. But, notably, OBT’s home region seems to be getting bigger.
With its most recent grants, the foundation has expanded its geographic focus to consider organizations in eastern Wisconsin and in the state of Montana. Previously, its focus was mostly just on groups in Minnesota, North Dakota and western Wisconsin. The trustees have stated that they want to bring additional resources to communities in these new regions, and Wisconsin and Montana grantseekers might be well-advised to introduce themselves.
More Diverse Offerings
While many local foundations in the Upper Midwest stick to making grants, OBT has been diversifying its approach and getting involved with additional products and services. This doesn’t come as a huge surprise considering OBT’s strong roots in the banking industry. In addition to basic grants, the funder offers medium-term loans, patient-capital funds, revolving lines of credit, health services financing and real estate acquisitions.
Last year, OBT created the Community Benefit Financial Company to help increase the availability of its financial resources. The foundation’s CEO has stated that this organization will increase the efficiency and visibility of OBT’s programs and mission-related investments in its four-state region.
Plans to Increase Giving
Trustees of OBT recently sold stock in Bremer Bank to outside investors, prompting a lawsuit filed by bank officials against the trustees in Ramsey County District Court. The controversy lies in whether the OBT trustees violated the bank’s organizational structure and engaged in dishonest dealings with the bank’s board of directors.
In response to the claim, the foundation trustees said the stock sale was necessary given changes in tax law, the competitive environment for mid-size banking organizations and other unforeseen circumstances. But more interesting to local nonprofits is that the sale will potentially allow OBT to double its charitable assets and increase giving by $50 million a year. That’s on top of the fact that OBT has already been setting records with its charitable contributions for the past nine consecutive years.
The trust has awarded over $600 million in grants since it was founded in 1944. Learn more about the Otto Bremer Trust’s local giving in Minnesota and North Dakota in IP’s full profile of the foundation in our Upper Midwest and Plains funding guide.
