The unique characteristics of cooperatives require they be analyzed differently from the more traditional noncooperative firm. A model of cooperative finance is developed that has the objective of maximizing the total, after-tax profits of the cooperative member patrons. A mathematical analysis derives the relationships among the various financial instruments, and a numerical analysis derives results for a cooperative under various hypothesized scenarios. We suggest that a model incorporating the unique characteristics of cooperatives is the more appropriate tool for studying cooperative finance than is the noncooperative model.