David Sparks
Eastern Region President
Regional Agribusiness Banking Group
David Sparks is responsible for managing the agribusiness lending operations of CoBank’s Eastern Region, which includes the bank’s Enfield, St. Louis and Louisville regional banking centers. These banking centers support agribusiness customers in 27 states along the eastern seaboard and inland to Louisiana and Missouri. Mr. Sparks is based in Enfield, Connecticut.
The Regional Agribusiness Banking Group specializes in serving agricultural cooperatives that process, market, transport and export agricultural commodities. The majority of customers are involved in the grain, farm supply, dairy, timber and sweetener industries. The Eastern Region also serves the fruit and vegetable, livestock and cotton industries, as well as the Farm Credit Associations which serve New England, New York and New Jersey. Mr. Sparks is a member of CoBank’s Senior Leadership Team.
Mr. Sparks began his career with CoBank in 1996, when he joined the Louisville, Kentucky, office as a relationship manager serving co-op accounts in Ohio and Indiana. In 1998, he became Team Lead for New Business Development. In 2002, he was promoted to Regional Vice President of CoBank’s RABG St. Louis Banking Center, where he oversaw a $4.5 billion portfolio of diversified agribusiness accounts throughout Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. He held that position for nine years. Prior to joining CoBank, Mr. Sparks spent 18 years with Farm Credit Services of Mid-America.
Mr. Sparks earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from the University of Kentucky in Lexington and a master’s degree in public service (emphasis in agricultural economics) from Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green. In addition, he has completed the Graduate School of Banking program at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Mr. Sparks has served on a number of boards, including the Grain and Feed Association of Illinois, the Kentucky Cooperative Council, the American Private Enterprise Society and the Agribusiness Industry Council.