Accelerating Rural Opportunities

Zachary N. Carpenter

As President and Chief Executive Officer, Zack leads the vision, development, and strategy for all Farmer Mac products, businesses, operations, loan servicing, and customer support. He oversees Farmer Mac’s mission-focused work to provide financial institutions and lenders across the country with financial solutions and risk mitigation tools that allow farmers, ranchers, agribusinesses, and rural infrastructure borrowers access to flexible and affordable credit.

In this role, Zack is responsible for guiding day-to-day operations and business strategy while continuing to shape the company’s long-term growth. He oversees the company’s extensive portfolios and develops customer, operations, and business strategies, product innovation and standardization, and business line strategy, research, and analytics.

Zack has devoted much of his career to facilitating dependable credit and financial solutions for American agriculture and rural communities. A respected executive with a reputation for building high-performing teams who share his same passion for and dedication to rural America, Zack has accumulated deep expertise developing and innovating financial solutions across the agribusiness value chain while developing strong relationships with other providers of capital. Before joining Farmer Mac, Zack spent nearly a decade in various management positions at CoBank, most recently as a Managing Director and Sector Vice President of its Corporate Agribusiness Banking Group, and previously as Executive Director of its Capital Markets division. He has also served as a vice president in finance and corporate strategy at Goldman Sachs.

Zack earned a bachelor of science degree in economics with a concentration in corporate finance from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA with specializations in corporate finance, accounting and business law from the Stern School of Business at New York University.

Brian M. Brinch

Brian is Farmer Mac’s Executive Vice President – Chief Risk Officer and oversees risk monitoring, reporting, and governance functions across the organization. He is responsible for the maintenance and continuous evolution of a robust enterprise risk management framework that supports the strategic goals of the organization. He works closely with senior leaders across the organization and with the Board’s Enterprise Risk Committee to build upon Farmer Mac’s strong and conservative culture of risk management and sets the vision and strategy for enterprise-wide risk management. Brian joined Farmer Mac in 2000, and most recently served as Senior Vice President – Enterprise Risk Officer. Prior to that, he served as Senior Vice President of Rural Infrastructure, where he was responsible for the division’s business development and customer success strategy. He also previously served as Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis, where he led the development of the company’s strategic planning initiative and guided its financial projections, stress testing, and data analytics.

Brian’s interest in Farmer Mac began while he was attending Pennsylvania State University for his Master’s in Agricultural and Applied Economics. He won the Outstanding Master’s Thesis Award for his thesis titled “An Analysis of Farmer Mac Prepayment Penalty Designs.” Brian is a CFA Charterholder, is FRM Certified, and has completed Carnegie Mellon University’s Chief Risk Officer certificate program.

Geraldine I. Hayhurst

With more than two decades of practicing law in dynamic financial services environments, Geraldine brings a strong track record of fostering ethical governance and aligning legal operations with business strategy. She provides counsel to Farmer Mac’s Board of Directors, executives, and cross-functional teams and plays an integral role in supporting the company’s long-term growth by overseeing legal and corporate governance matters.

Prior to joining Farmer Mac, Geraldine served as Associate General Counsel, Corporate and Compliance, at CoStar Group, Inc., where she supported the company in all aspects of corporate governance, including filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and managing M&A transactions and Compliance and Privacy teams. She was previously General Counsel and Secretary at NewPoint Real Estate Capital, where she provided strategic advice, developed products, and executed corporate strategy while implementing innovative solutions for the company’s financing products. During her tenure at Freddie Mac, Geraldine provided legal counsel to the president, CEO, division heads, and the board. She helped develop the company’s strategic plan and priorities scorecard, played a key role in the creation of the multifamily K-deal securitization product, and actively managed and developed a team of 30 attorneys and legal professionals. Prior to her time at Freddie Mac, Geraldine worked at the SEC as an Attorney-Advisor in the Division of Trading and Markets. She also gained experience at A&O Shearman and Clifford Chance. Geraldine earned her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and holds a BBA in Finance from Loyola University, Chicago.

Matthew M. Pullins

Matt leads Farmer Mac’s finance organization in advancing the company’s mission through strategic financial management and operational excellence. He oversees all aspects of Farmer Mac’s finance functions, including treasury, asset/liability management, financial planning and analysis, pricing, investor relations, financial reporting, and accounting. Matt is responsible for ensuring the company’s financial integrity and regulatory compliance, guiding the development and execution of capital and liquidity strategies, and communicating financial goals and performance to stakeholders.

Matt brings more than two decades of experience in corporate finance, accounting, capital markets, and regulatory reporting. Before joining Farmer Mac, he served as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer – Capital Markets at PNC Financial Services Group, Inc., where he led strategic planning, budgeting, accounting, and financial reporting for a $1 billion revenue business. His career reflects a deep understanding of financial strategy, risk management, and enterprise reporting functions, developed through progressively senior leadership roles. Earlier in his career, Matt served as Chief Financial Officer of PNC’s institutional asset management division and subsequently oversaw PNC’s regulatory reporting and loan accounting activities supporting a $290 billion loan portfolio during his tenure. Raised on a family farm in western Ohio, he remains passionate about agriculture and actively involved in the management of his family’s farming enterprise.

Matt holds an M.B.A. in Corporate Financial Management and a B.S. in Agribusiness and Applied Economics from The Ohio State University; he is a licensed CPA in Pennsylvania. He has completed advanced leadership programs, including the PNC Accelerator and Dynamic Leadership, and is committed to fostering innovation and purpose-driven leadership in finance.