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You’ll know it right away: We’re really not like other banks. We’re informal, friendly and fun. We take our customers’ money seriously, but not ourselves. We even call ourselves by a fun name that started out as a nickname years ago: WaMu. We’re the bank for everyday people. In fact, we believe no one else focuses on consumers, small business and commercial customers like we do. We listen to our customers and give them what they value--yet at the same time we make banking simple and enjoyable. When you visit one of our retail banking stores, call us or find us online, you’ll see that we talk to our customers in straightforward, clear, everyday language--we don’t hide behind “bank speak.” You’ll also notice that we invent for our customers. This isn’t too surprising, since innovation is a core value and big part of our WaMu legacy: * Pioneered the first home loan in 1890. * Started the first shared ATM network in the 1970s. * Offered full-service brokerage and mutual funds through our stores in the 1980s, and was the first bank to do so. * Developed a new retail store design in the late 1990s, the first full-service branch design to be issued a U.S. patent. * Introduced the new WaMu Free Checking™ account in 2006, which offers a whole new level of free services. * Completed the first covered bond issuance by a U.S. Bank in Europe. * Introduced the easiest, paperless online account opening process in the industry. * Offered the WaMu MortgagePlus account, an innovative mortgage product that combines a first mortgage and home equity line of credit into a single loan.