Reuters - Wachovia Corp has begun early merger talks with several suitors, according to published reports, all of which spurned Washington Mutual Inc prior to that lender's seizure by the U.S. government.

Reuters - Stocks fell on Friday as nervousness abounded about when Congress would pass a $700 billion financial sector rescue and Washington Mutual became the largest U.S. bank failure in history.

Reuters - Washington Mutual may file for bankruptcy shortly, said Merrill Lynch analyst Kenneth Bruce terminating coverage of the stock.

Reuters - U.S. lawmakers faced growing pressure on Friday to agree on a $700 billion financial rescue plan after talks collapsed in acrimony and the biggest bank closure in U.S. history roiled global markets.

Reuters - Hard hats, transit workers, machinists, teachers and other labor unionists railed against the U.S. government's proposed bailout of Wall Street on Thursday in a protest steps from the New York Stock Exchange.

Reuters - A rescue for the U.S. financial system unraveled on Thursday amid accusations Republican presidential candidate John McCain scuppered the deal, and Washington Mutual was closed by U.S. authorities and its assets sold in America's biggest ever bank failure.

Reuters - HSBC Holdings , Europe's biggest bank, said on Friday it was cutting 1,100 jobs in its global banking and markets operation, or 4 percent of the unit's total, as it weathers the global financial crisis.

Reuters - Washington Mutual Inc was closed by the U.S. government in by far the largest failure of a U.S. bank, and its banking assets were sold to JPMorgan Chase & Co for $1.9 billion.