Farmer Mac's CEO transition will take place nine months earlier than previously disclosed, the government-sponsored enterprise announced.
Zachary Carpenter, currently president and chief operating officer of the publicly traded business formally known as the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corp., will now start as CEO on July 1.
Current CEO Bradford Nordholm will in the short term remain as a senior advisor to Carpenter and hold the honorary title of CEO emeritus until Sept. 30.
Last September,
National Mortgage News reached out to Farmer Mac to get more details on why the change date was moved up.
"The board has been very pleased with the thoughtful, cooperative, and seamless handoff between Brad and Zack over the past several months," said Lowell Junkins, Farmer Mac's chairman in a press release. "The strength of that transition reflects a company that is aligned, well informed, and united by a strong culture and a clear commitment to its mission."
Carpenter joined Farmer Mac in May 2019 following over seven years at CoBank, the last two as a managing director, according to his LinkedIn profile.
He also was a vice president at Goldman Sachs and a senior analyst for Johnson & Johnson.
"Brad's leadership has shaped Farmer Mac in lasting ways, and I am committed to carrying that legacy forward while leading the company into its next chapter," Carpenter said. "Farmer Mac has the mission, the people, the operating model, and the market opportunity to continue serving our customers, strengthening rural America, and creating durable value for our shareholders."
Nordholm became Farmer Mac CEO and president in 2018, replacing Junkins, who held the roles on an interim basis, following
Buzby had
"We have built a durable operating model, delivered exceptional financial performance, developed an outstanding executive leadership team, and are now driving impressive momentum across each of our operating segments," Nordholm said in the press release, adding it is "an excellent time" to make the transition.
This isn't the only C-suite level change at Farmer Mac in the last six months. Matthew Pullins
For the first quarter, Farmer Mac had net income attributable to common stockholders of $51.8 million, compared with almost $44 million for the same period in 2025.
Agricultural finance was 64% of its first quarter total of $34.8 billion in business volume, with farm and ranch lending contributing $20.2 billion and corporate agriculture finance adding $2.1 billion. The remaining 36% was from infrastructure finance, including $8 billion under power and utilities, $2.9 billion in renewable energy and $1.7 billion of broadband infrastructure.
Total business volume grew 17% compared with the first quarter of 2025.
"Growth was broad-based and supported by strong execution and sustained customer demand, while maintaining disciplined underwriting and risk management," Nordholm said in the May earnings release. "The momentum coming out of 2025 has carried into 2026, reinforcing our confidence in the outlook and the durability of our business model as we execute on our mission and support rural America."
