Just two hours after we got back from a day-trip to Bremerton and its beautiful waterfront, we got an email announcing that Bremerton's Westsound Bank was defunct. The Washington Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) took possession, "citing severe asset problems, significant losses and inadequate capital," brought in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the FDIC sold Westsound to Kitsap Bank of Port Orchard. more ›

For a few months now, emails from our friend who still works at WaMu have come with the epilogue: "WaMu, now backed by the strength of JPMorgan Chase." more ›

Bloomberg is reporting that Regal Financial Bank, headquartered at the 4th and Madison Tower, is being "sued by a group of more than 4,000 Indonesian investors over accusations it helped operate a $600 million Ponzi scheme." The suit alleges that Regal Financial Bank President Jesse Tam and an advisory board member, Danny Wong, assisted in soliciting funds for an investment company, but that the funds were used to pay previous investors, while Tam "Madoff" with some of the funds for Regal. Regal says the allegations are "baseless," says the PSBJ. more ›

What a breaking news afternoon we're having. We were alerted by @thesouthlake's tweet about a 3:30 p.m. bank robbery at the WaMu at 5th and Union downtown. KING 5 says the robber says he left a bomb behind, which means he has also left a lot of snarled traffic behind. The suspect is "in his 30s with no facial hair and no glasses," which leaves us out because we're wearing glasses and have been all day. Anyway, that block of 5th is shut down until they sort it out. more ›

Economist, New York Times columnist, and Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman doesn't want you to miss any of the intricacies of his thought, which is why he bothers to explain how Wile E. Coyote generally flies off a cliff, pedals the air for a bit, and then plummets like a stone to the canyon floor below--all for the benefit of those of us "not familiar with the classics." He's ruddy, glowing with the good health of a man whom circumstances have put in the right, and facing a sold-out house at a World Affairs Council talk at Town Hall, 850 people hanging on his every word. more ›

Dominic Holden's got a good piece up about the future of Capitol Hill dessert emporium B&O Espresso. Now that a developer is moving forward with plans for six-story apartment building on the site, B&O owner Majed Lukatah is caught between a rock and a hard place:

Lukatah is also skeptical that he can still open a second location on Broadway—which could serve as a substitute location while the B & O is closed—even though he has already obtained the permits. Banks won’t offer him a loan to remodel the space, he says.

Monroe Police are doubtful that a man who robbed an armored vehicle yesterday actually escaped via inner tube down the Skykomish. However, police believe the robber did post a Craigslist ad to help make an easier getaway. The ad asked for construction workers in need of work to show up in a specific outfit at a location across the street from the bank. Nearly a dozen men showed up in blue shirts and respirator masks, which is like what Monroe police say the robber was wearing. So no inner tube escape, but the latest details still make the suspect sound pretty ingenious.
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It's not a good day for a bank when the Seattle Times story on the crater your stock fell into begins like this:

Your money is safe if its in an institution insured by the FDIC. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. covers up to $100,000 per institution, and even may provide additional coverage for IRAs in those banks.

Business Week scores yesterday's WaMu shareholders meeting, "activists three, bank zero." The Seattle Times settles for "contentious," while the P-I has this leading question for CEO Kerry Killinger from Lee Lannoye, a shareholder and former WaMu executive vice president: "You have destroyed the company--why are you not being held accountable?" MSN Money captures the executive team in action at Benaroya Hall like so:

"I just want people to calm down and have a little faith," said CEO Kerry Killinger at the company's annual shareholder meeting late Tuesday. "We will get through this."