Washington Banking Increases Dividend to $0.15

Washington Banking Company

, the holding company for Whidbey Island Bank, announced today that the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.15 per common share to shareholders of record on November 5th and payable on November 20, 2012. “We've increased the payout to $0.15 this quarter reflecting our solid operating results,” stated Jack Wagner, President & CEO, “and we're proud of the fact that our continued profitability has rewarded shareholders with cash dividends every quarter since going public in June 1998 – a total of 58 consecutive quarters.” Earlier in the year, the company outlined the two-tiered approach used in determining the dividend amount. “We are considering six cents as our “basic” dividend and then adding a variable amount to equate to a total dividend payout not to exceed 50% of quarterly earnings,” Wagner said. The payment of dividends is at the sole discretion of the Board of Directors and will depend upon a number of factors, including capital requirements, the Company's and the Bank's financial condition and results of operations, tax considerations, statutory and regulatory limitations, general economic conditions and any applicable restrictions. In a separate release today, Washington Banking announced 2012 third quarter results, reporting net income of $4.6 million, or $0.30 per diluted common share. Management will host a conference call on Friday, October 26, at 10:00 a.m. Pacific time (1:00 p.m. ET) to discuss the results. This call will also be broadcast live via the internet. Investment professionals and all current and prospective shareholders are invited to access the live call by dialing (480) 629-9835 at 10:00 a.m. PT for conference ID #4566468. To listen to the call online, either live or archived, visit the Investor Relations page of Whidbey Island Bank's website at www.wibank.com. Direct deposit of dividends is available for registered holders of WBCO. The quickest way for registered holders to have their dividends deposited directly into a transaction account is to log-in to the “Investor Centre” area of the transfer agent's website at www.computershare.com. Registered holders of WBCO shares may also enroll in this service by calling Computershare at 1-800-962-4284 and requesting an enrollment form.