STCU begins work on Moran Prairie branch
The Spokane Teachers Credit Union is breaking ground for its 16th branch office, at 5711 S. Hailee Lane on Moran Prairie in Spokane.
The branch will serve the area near Palouse Highway and 57th Avenue, one of the busiest intersections on Spokane’s South Hill.
This branch is designed by Spokane’s Nystrom+Olson Architecture. Walker Construction is the general contractor for the roughly 4,000-square-foot building. Construction is estimated to cost $916,000.
Like the recently opened South Valley branch, this office is designed to achieve LEED Gold certification for high energy efficiency, STCU said in a news release.
Its features include solar panels, heat-reflecting roof materials, efficient lights and heating system, and interior furnishings that are certified low in volatile organic compounds.
It’s expected to open by the end of this year.
Hecla CEO awarded stock
Hecla Mining Co.’s board of directors awarded $500,000 worth of company stock to CEO Phil Baker.
Baker received 107,759 shares of Hecla’s common stock, the company reported in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing last week. The granting of stock awards to Hecla’s top executive is tied to profits for shareholders over a three-year period, the filing said.
At Hecla’s recent annual meeting, Baker said the company is on a turnaround following two fatalities at the Lucky Friday Mine in 2011 and the underground silver mine’s shutdown by federal regulators in January amid concerns about the main shaft.
About $40 million will be spent on shaft repairs and other projects at the Lucky Friday this year. Company officials expect to start hiring back laid off Lucky Friday employees this month, with silver production resuming early next year.
Sterling sells Montana banks
Sterling Savings Bank announced the sale of its Montana banking operations.
The Spokane-based bank has seven retail branches and other businesses in Montana.
Eagle Bancorp Montana Inc., which operates American Federal Savings Bank, is buying the branches by paying a $7.3 million premium to acquire $187 million of deposits and $44 million of loans and other assets and liabilities.
UK weighs Barclays charges
British prosecutors are examining whether they can bring criminal charges on top of the massive fines imposed on Barclays bank for a financial market manipulation scandal.
The announcement came hours after Barclays’ chairman, Marcus Agius, resigned and accepted ultimate responsibility for the misbehavior between 2005 and 2009 that cost the company $453 million in fines by U.S. and British agencies.
Britain’s Serious Fraud Office said it hopes to decide whether to pursue criminal charges within a month.
Agius’ departure boosted the bank’s share price but also brought fresh demands that chief executive Bob Diamond also accept responsibility and resign.
Dell wins Quest bidding war
Dell is buying Quest Software for $2.4 billion to expand its offerings as its personal computer business weakens in an era of smartphones and sleeker devices like the iPad. Buying Quest will more than double the size of Dell’s software business.
The deal capped off a bidding war that began last month when Quest revealed a mystery suitor had made an offer trumping a $2 billion sale that had been worked out with Insight Venture Partners in March. The secret bidder turned out to be Dell Inc., the second-largest PC maker in the U.S. behind Hewlett-Packard Co.