Thank you kindly.
I want to thank our witnesses for being here this morning.
Mr. Brun, since you represent Desjardins Group, I have a few financial questions for you.
We, the committee members, have repeatedly heard from a number of witnesses that cooperatives are up against numerous challenges when seeking financing for project development. We were told that the reason they have trouble getting the financing they need may be a lack of education in the financial sector. As I see it, the problem is a bit more complicated than that, just as complicated as the matter of demutualization. Perhaps it is also unique to cooperatives.
Can you describe the challenges that arise when a cooperative is looking for financing to grow its operations?
Is a lack of education to blame? Is it a poor understanding of cooperatives? Is it a legal barrier? What happens to the guarantees if the cooperative fails to make a payment?
Since financial cooperatives are more familiar with the reality that cooperatives face, is it easier for cooperatives to work with a financial cooperative when they need money?