Business
WaFd Bank Completes Sale of $2.8 Billion in Multi-Family Loans
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Washington Federal Bank ("WaFd Bank" or the "Bank"), the wholly owned subsidiary of WaFd, Inc. (Nasdaq: WAFD) (the "Company"),
About this update from Wafd, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":" SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--\nWashington Federal Bank (\"WaFd Bank\" or the \"Bank\"), the wholly owned subsidiary of WaFd, Inc. (Nasdaq: WAFD) (the \"Company\"), today announced the consummation of the sale of approximately $2.8 billion of multifamily commercial real estate loans (“CRE”) to Bank of America, which in turn is selling the loans to funds managed by Pacific Investment Management Company LLC (“PIMCO”). To our knowledge, this represents the largest non-FDIC assisted CRE loan sale ever. The sale of the multi-family loans was executed at no loss to WaFd and provides immediate liquidity going forward.\n\n\nWaFd Bank President and CEO Brent Beardall stated, “This should prove to the investment community that the sky is not falling when it comes to CRE loans. These are high quality loans and we believe the purchase price is reflective of the low amount of credit risk in the portfolio. Further, this sale was executed at 92-percent of principal balance. That discount is almost entirely attributable to changes in interest rates not the quality of these CRE loans. CRE is a broad category which includes: multifamily, owner occupied, industrial, hospitality, storage and office. When evaluating CRE risk it is very important to understand the type of CRE, the location and sponsor equity.”\n\n\nMr. Beardall continued, “These packaged loans all came from Luther Burbank Savings in the acquisition by WaFd Bank in March of this year. The sale of CRE loans was not a condition of the merger. WaFd Bank has previously disclosed this loan sale gives the Bank several immediate options including the option to either buy down debt, originate new loans, buyback stock or a combination of all three.”\n\n\nWashington Federal Bank, a Washington state-chartered bank with headquarters in Seattle, Washington, has 210 branches in nine western states. To find out more about WaFd Bank, please visit our website www.wafdbank.com. The Company uses its website to distribute financial and other material information about the Company.\n\n\nImportant Cautionary Statements\n\n\nThe foregoing information should be read in conjunction with the financial statements, notes and other information contained in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.\n\n\nThis press release contains statements about the Co...