RESTON, Va. – In one of the biggest derivatives losses ever, student loan giant Sallie Mae said it may have lost more than $1 billion betting its own stock would continue rising last summer after it agreed to be sold in a $25 billion takeover.

GRANITE CITY, Wis. – A man who helped hold up Granite City Steel FCU in June 2006 and made off with $27,651 was sentenced Monday to 12 years in prison.

MIDLAND, Mich. – A 60-year-old woman was arrested Monday and charged with three area bank robberies over the last month, including the Dec. 20 hold-up at Members First CU.

FALL RIVER, Mass. – Fall River Municipal CU is offering its members up to $1,000 in low-cost energy loans to help pay the rising costs of home heating oil.

CINCINNATI – Communicating Arts CU will pay its members a bonus dividend and interest rebate totaling more than $140,000.

WATERLOO, Iowa – Veridian CU yesterday said it provided nine local organizations a total of $35,000 under its annual Inclusive Community Grant program.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – NCUA reported it made six low-interest loans totaling $1 million from its Community Development Revolving Loan Fund.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Pentagon FCU yesterday announced it has agreed to become the preferred financial services provider for the Military Officers Association, which will expand its field of membership to the Navy and Marine Corps.

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Meriwest CU said it is partnering with the Housing trust of Santa Clara County to provide a new affordable home mortgage to help moderate-income families buy their first home in high-priced Santa Clara County.

WASHINGTON – Congressional FCU, the credit union that serves as many as half the members of the House of Representatives, announced the retirement of Robert Hess, its president and CEO for the past 38 years.

HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – Hanscom FCU gave its members a special holiday present: a loyalty dividend totaling more than $1 million.

BALTIMORE – MECU said it paid its members a year-end loan interest rebate and an extraordinary dividend of $2.12 million–making a total of $4.25 million paid out to members for 2007.

HONOLULU – An armed assailant who dressed as everything from a nurse to a wounded soldier to rob 11 island institutions–including the same branch of Hickam FCU three times–is headed to prison after his conviction on 13 counts of bank robbery and brandishing a firearm.

SAN DIMAS, Calif.–After a review by auditors, WesCorp has restated its earnings for 2005, made adjustments to its 2006 earnings and revised its hedge accounting practices for 2007.

EUGENE, Ore. – Several credit unions that rejected the TJX settlement are plotting a potential legal strategy aimed at recovering costs and possible punitive damages associated with the retail giant’s massive data security breach.

MADISON, Wis. – CUNA Mutual said last week its charitable foundation has approved $513,000 in grants to local organizations, including a $218,000 award to the KinderReady program for early childhood education in low-income families.

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. – PHH Corp., which operates the largest mortgage bank for credit unions, announced yesterday, New Year’s Day, it has terminated an agreement to be acquired by GE Capital after private equity firm the Blackstone Group failed to raise financing for the purchase of PHH’s mortgage business from GE.

RALEIGH, N.C. – Members of State Employees CU raised $38,000 for eight local children’s hospital’s during two holiday fundraisers.

TULSA, Okla. – A quick-thinking teller at Tulsa Postal and Community FCU frustrated a potential heist Monday when he saw the robber enter the building brandishing a handgun and locked the inside doors before the suspect could get into the lobby.

HONOLULU – Authorities believe a man who withdrew all of the cash from a Hawaii Central CU using 27 different cards in a matter of minutes is responsible for a much larger cards scam that has affected as many as 900 accounts.