Whoo-hoo is Booo-hoo! Collapsing under the weight of it’s enormous bad bets on the mortgage market, WaMu was seized Thursday by the FDIC.
In what is the largest bank failure in the country’s history, JP Morgan Chase confirmed it acquired banking assets of Washington Mutual. JPMorgan Chase said the acquisition will give it 5,400 branches in 23 states, and that it plans to close less than 10 percent of the two companies’ branches.
One good note on the transaction is the sale happened before a total collapse of the thrift happened and any financial involvement from FDIC was necessary. All accounts at Washington Mutual will be accessible in the same manner they always have, even accounts over the FDIC limits. Both bank customers will also be able to share ATM’s without fees.
It’s also a high probability that Chase will lower WaMu’s attractive savings account 4.0% APY rate in the coming weeks.
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