Horicon Bank's journey into employee ownership began as a plea for liquidity; a family shareholder was planning a major purchase and needed to sell to raise cash. In response, the Horicon, Wis.-based bank created a ready market for the shares — and those of other stockholders that could come up for sale in the future — by establishing an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, a federally regulated retirement plan that invests in the stock of a firm on behalf of its employees.
