Bradley Meacham reports on Washington Mutual's plans to open nearly 10 percent more branches nationwide this year.

The Seattle lender plans to open 250 branches, mostly in new markets such as Chicago and Denver, Chief Executive Kerry Killinger said yesterday at a University of Washington Business School Dean's Breakfast.

The New York Times highlights the contributions of George Waters to the success of American Express.

American Express hired Mr. Waters as general manager of its credit card division in 1961. At the time, credit cards were accepted primarily by restaurants, and Visa and MasterCard did not yet exist. Diners Club was the card that had the most members. Mr. Waters gave the American Express card a significant lift by persuading American Airlines to drop its credit card and begin accepting the American Express card. Other airlines soon followed. To strengthen the credit card division, Mr. Waters significantly increased its annual fee, reduced the number of delinquent accounts and improved its accounting system. Under his leadership in the 1960's and 1970's, the American Express card became a global brand and the flagship product of the American Express Company.

Diebold is testing biometric hand geometry recognition as part of its campus card system.

"WVU has partnered successfully with Diebold since 1995 with the use of the Mountaineer Card system, which allows our students to do a variety of things from purchasing meals at campus restaurants and items at the bookstore, to riding the Personal Rapid Transit System (PRT) and gaining entry to athletic contests," Hardesty said. "This innovative electronic security system for the residence hall and campus recreation center is just another example of how this company is changing the way we do things to make life more secure, convenient and accessible for our students."