Record income for Bank of North Dakota

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) - Last year was a record-breaker for the Bank of North Dakota. It earned more than $230 million, with nearly $11 billion in assets.

While other states have tried to run their own banks and failed, North Dakota’s has found its niche and thrived.

The Bank of North Dakota played a vital role in a very challenging year. It partnered with other banks in delivering five disaster relief programs in one year. Everything from replacing grain bins to economic challenges to helping furloughed federal employees.

“That mission part is where we step in when the state needs us, whether it’s a special project that the state has a strategic interest in, whether it’s to build a pipeline, or it’s a value-added agricultural manufacturing facility coming in. If there’s a disaster, and we step in to fill some gap,” said Don Morgan, president of Bank of North Dakota.

After more than a hundred years in business, the bank is also trying to keep pace with non-banking apps that can move money faster and cheaper, through a program known as the Roughrider Coin.

“Every program we roll out, or every solution we roll out for something occurring in the state of North Dakota, we learn from, we improve in the future, we make it better over time,” said Morgan.

And he said the record profits have come as a result of long-term planning that has shown steady growth.

Morgan said he has met with four other states interested in forming their own banks.