Washington

A deal by Washington Federal — operating under an MOU with the OTS for nearly a year — to buy branches from Beal Financial may be its greatest stoke of confidence to date.

Boston Private Bank & Trust has sold one of its four Seattle-area branches to fast-growing Heritage Financial Corp.

Bank of Georgetown in Washington, D.C., has raised more than $25 million in fresh capital that it will use to fund its continued expansion in the city and surrounding suburbs.

Boston Private Bank & Trust has sold one of its four Seattle-area branches to fast-growing Heritage Financial Corp.

Having already raised $50 million in fresh capital this year, Seattle Bank announced this week that it has received another $12 million from investors that its chief executive officer said the once-ailing bank would use to accelerate its growth plan.

Washington Federal Inc. in Seattle is raising its profile in New Mexico with a deal to acquire six branches and $253 million of deposits from Charter Bank in Albuquerque.

Washington Federal Inc. in Seattle is raising its profile in New Mexico with a deal to acquire six branches and $253 million of deposits from Charter Bank in Albuquerque.

Columbia Banking System wants to make acquisitions. But there are few opportunities in its market, relegating the Tacoma, Wash., company to taking small, deliberate steps.

The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions closed First Heritage Bank on Friday, and for a second straight week Columbia Banking System submitted a winning bid.

Investors have recapitalized several banks, most notably those in the western U.S., in recent months with the intention of salvaging their franchises and creating vehicles that can be used to buy other banks.

Cydly Langer Smith succeeded her mother, Helen Langer Smith, who is replacing her daughter as the vice chairman of the $900 million-asset bank, it said late Wednesday.

Capitol Bancorp has struck a deal to sell yet another one of its bank units. AmericanWest Bank in Spokane, Wash., will buy Bank of the Northwest for $17 million in cash.

Three failures late Friday, including a pair in Georgia, cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. an estimated $445 million.

After years of experimentation, some banks are finding the right mix of technology, ambiance and human interaction. The most effective formula varies, and the only constant is that there are no absolutes.

The $2.4 billion-asset company said late Friday that it had filed a registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission seeking approval to start selling stock in July.

Columbia Banking System Inc. of Tacoma, Wash., said late Tuesday that its chief executive had joined the board of the American Bankers Association.

While states like Washington and Oregon have had their share of failures, there have been several deals to save larger struggling banks there, too. Add Cascade Financial Corp. in Everett, Wash., to that pile.

The Federal Reserve Board said it has reached a written agreement with Westside Banking Co. of University Place, Wash.

The Federal Reserve Board acted against three banks Tuesday. Bank of Whitman in Colfax, Wash., was hit with a prompt corrective action after the Fed found that the $722.2 million-asset bank was undercapitalized and failed to submit an acceptable capital restoration plan.

After saving his Washington bank from failure through an ingenious bankruptcy strategy, Patrick Rusnak has been scooped up by an in-city competitor.