NEW YORK -- WashingtonMutual is close to landing a $5 billion cash infusion from private-equity firm TPG and other investors, according to a report Monday in the Wall Street Journal.
The U.S. mortgage crises has sapped the capital requirements of dozens of banks, included that of the nation's largest savings and loan.
While the deal would deliver much needed capital to WashingtonMutual Inc., it would dilute the holdings of current WaMu shareholders.
The rapid deterioration of assets tied to U.S. mortgages has forced some banks to hunt urgently for capital, at the risk of regulatory review.
Banks with a rapidly increasing non-performing asset to risk-based capital ratio will likely experience the scrutiny of regulators, FBR analyst Paul Miller wrote in a research note. A ratio approaching 100 percent could trigger sanctions or penalties, but any rapidly increasing ratio could spark a review.
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At the end of 2006, no bank's ratio of non-performing assets to risk-based capital was above 19 percent, Miller wrote in the note.
Those with ratios above 20 percent include WaMu at 21.8 percent and the nation's largest mortgage lender, Countrywide Financial Corp., at 29.2 percent.
WaMu shares rose more than 10 percent, or $1.05, to $11.22 in premarket trading.
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