WashingtonFIRST

Now defunct, WashingtonFIRST was a coalition of financial sector institutions operating in Washington State, collaborating with one another to identify risk and improve the resiliency of our members and our communities. The coalition was formed in 2006 as the Pacific Northwest Regional Coalition for Financial Services and had participation from over 20 financial institutions. Annie Searle founded the coalition at the request of the U.S. Department of Treasury and the FDIC, and Washington Mutual hosted many of the coalition meetings in the first several years. Shelby Edwards of PEMCO was the first co-chair of the coalition.

The intent behind WashingtonFIRST was to serve as an investment in the event of a crisis, ensuring that Washington's financial sector institutions were collaborating with one another, the public sector, and other critical infrastructure sectors at all levels. WashingtonFIRST provided a unique forum for local and regional preparedness and enhanced resiliency as well as being part of a national network of partner coalitions.

Mission

• Establish and foster an effective public/private sector partnership in the financial services sector.
• Increase the resiliency of Washington business in the event of an emergency, natural disaster, or terrorist event, in collaboration with the State of Washington, our City and County partners, and federal agencies, including US Department of Treasury, Homeland Security, FEMA, FBI and others.
• Partner across critical infrastructure sectors to address interdependencies across the State in areas such as finance, insurance, banking, telecommunications, power, transportation, and others.

For more information, feel free to contact us.