Equity Capital and Restructuring of Cooperatives as Investor-Oriented Firms

The inability of financially successful cooperatives to recognize appreciation of patron’s equity creates a dilemma for cooperative members. The value of an enterprise as an investor-oriented firm may exceed the value of patron’s participation in a limited patronage horizon. This difference has been a factor in the decision of several cooperatives to restructure wholly or partially as investor-oriented firms. Reasons for valuation differences are discussed and related to six cases of cooperative restructuring.