Bremer Bank is the name of the banks owned by the Bremer Financial Corporation, a bank holding company founded by Otto Bremer in 1943. They operate bank branches in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota, with a financial capitalization of about $8 billion. With headquarters in St. Paul, Minnesota, the company is completely owned by employees and the Otto Bremer Foundation.
Otto Bremer was born in Germany in 1867, son of a banker father. He immigrated to the US in 1886, with his brother Adolf. He was hired as a bookkeeper at the National German American Bank in St. Paul, Minnesota. During the next decades, he was promoted to higher positions, and became a major stockholder in the bank. In 1921, he became Chairman of the new American National Bank, and continued as Chair for 20 years.
In 1943, Otto created the Otto Bremer Company as a holding corporation to consolidate his interests in these banks (by this time, he was the major or sole owner of most of them). He also created the Otto Bremer Foundation in 1944, as a charitable organization to grant funds for public purposes in the small towns where there was a Bremer bank. The Foundation was funded from the profits of the Bremer bank holding company. As of 2009, the Foundation donates about $25 million each year. In addition, bank employees are strongly encouraged to volunteer in local town activities. Each year, these employees donate more than 100,000 volunteer hours.
