Union Bank, which took over the troubled Frontier Financial Corp. earlier this year, has named Brian Hawley to run its Washington and Oregon operations. Hawley, a senior vice president of the California bank, will be head of Pacific Northwest Branch Banking and will be based in Everett. Frontier, founded in Everett, underwent a forced sale ordered by federal regulators, who didn’t want it to fail. Frontier was battered during the recession by a heavy percentage of home and real estate loans that went bad. Hawley joined Union in 2009. He previously worked for Countrywide Bank and also ran Central Puget Sound branches for Wells Fargo. He has a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Washington. “I am very pleased to return home to the beautiful Pacific Northwest where I have family roots,” Hawley said.
Bank lending fund nears Senate vote
Senators struggled to reach agreement Wednesday on a bill that would create a $30 billion government fund to help community banks increase lending to small businesses. Democrats say banks should be able to use the lending fund to leverage up to $300 billion in loans to small businesses, helping to loosen tight credit markets. The fund would be available to banks with less than $10 billion in assets. Some Republicans likened the fund to the unpopular bailout of the financial industry. Democrats and Republicans were negotiating a handful of amendments with the goal of scheduling a vote on the bill. Both party leaders, however, said they were at an impasse Wednesday evening.
Gasoline protests continue in Greece
Striking fuel-tanker drivers said talks with the government have collapsed and vowed to press on with a protest that has dried up gas pumps and alarmed tour operators and businesses struggling to survive the country’s financial crisis. The strike, in its third full day, has sparked an unexpected midsummer crisis for Greece’s center-left government, which is facing fierce union opposition as it pushes through unpopular cost-cutting reforms.
Visa profits slip over investments
Visa Inc. on Wednesday said its third-quarter profit slipped 2 percent, hurt by a sharp drop in investment income, but it posted increased operating income and maintained a strong forecast for its fiscal year. The San Francisco company posted net income of $716 million, or 97 cents per share, for the period ended June 30. That compared with net income of $729 million, or 97 cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter. Revenue rose 23 percent to $2.03 billion from $1.65 billion last year. The results topped Wall Street expectations for profit of 93 cents per share on revenue of $1.97 billion. The decline reflected a dip in investment income to $1 million from $504 million a year ago, when Visa sold its investment in a Brazilian subsidiary.
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