Thrifts stung by bad debt

Federal regulators say U.S. thrifts lost $5.4 billion in the second quarter and set aside a record amount to cover losses from bad mortgages and other loans. Data from the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision show federally insured savings and loan institutions posted their second-largest quarterly loss ever in the April-June period, after the $8.8-billion loss in the fourth quarter of last year. Thrifts, which concentrate on mortgage lending, have been stung by rising home-loan defaults. The $5.4-billion quarterly loss compares with net profits of $3.8 billion in the year-ago period and a loss of $627 million in the first quarter. The roughly 830 thrifts also set aside a record $14 billion to cover losses from bad mortgages and other loans.

Pawtucket Web firm wins N.Y. contract

Pawtucket-based Embolden Design Inc., a Web development and consulting firm, has been hired by New York Community Trust, the country’s second-largest community foundation, to lead the continuing development of its online community. The selection bolsters Embolden’s position as a leading Web support and service provider for large community foundations and nonprofit organizations. More than 30 new clients have hired Embolden through the first half of this year, including Baltimore Community Foundation, Jewish Family and Children’s Services, The Wildlands Trust, Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless, currentcare, Building Futures, The Rhode Island Chapter of the American Association of Pediatrics, and Sargent Rehabilitation Center. “We continue to have tremendous opportunities to serve community foundations and nonprofits with the knowledge and expertise we have developed over our 10-year history,” said Embolden president Ann-Marie Harrington.

Verizon extends reach of FiOS

Residents in two more Rhode Island communities — Glocester and Smithfield — now have access to fiber-optic television through Verizon, the company said. Its FiOS TV is already available in 14 Rhode Island communities — Cranston, Coventry, East Greenwich, Exeter, Foster, Johnston, Narragansett, North Kingstown, North Providence, Providence, South Kingstown, Warwick, West Greenwich and West Warwick. This week, Verizon announced that it has added 75 more channels, including 55 more in high definition, to its FiOS lineup in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. As a result, the service now offers more than 250 channels, including 85 in HD.

Citizens’ parent hit by data breach

A computer containing banking-security details of more than 1 million people has been sold on eBay, British banking officials said Tuesday, announcing the latest in a series of losses of personal data in the United Kingdom. The Royal Bank of Scotland, parent of Citizens Bank, acknowledged that a machine belonging to archiving company Graphic Data and sold “inappropriately to a third party” had information on credit-card applications from some RBS customers and data from other banks. The computer contained account numbers, passwords, mobile-telephone numbers and signatures. A spokesperson for Citizens Bank in Rhode Island said that the computer did not contain any information involving its customers. A former employee of Graphic Data sold a computer server used by the company on eBay without formatting, or erasing, the internal hard drive. The security breach became known when the buyer found the information and contacted authorities. Britain’s Information Commissioner’s Office, the government agency responsible for protecting people’s privacy, has launched an investigation into the incident.

Judge rebuffs group’s bid for tribe status

A federal judge in New Haven, Conn., on Tuesday turned back the latest attempt by the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation to win federal recognition. U.S. District Court Judge Peter Dorsey denied the tribe’s motion for a summary judgment that would have granted recognition. Dorsey also granted government motions to affirm the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs’ decision to deny the tribe’s petition. In a 52-page decision, Dorsey rejected the Schaghticoke’s argument that powerful political forces opposed to a third Indian casino in Connecticut helped reverse an earlier agency decision to acknowledge the tribe.

Textron unit lands drone training role

Hunt Valley, Md.-based AAI Corp., an operating unit of Textron Systems, which is a division of Textron Inc., of Providence, has announced that its family of training aids, devices, simulators and simulations (TADSS) has been selected to support training for Army National Guard units operating the Shadow tactical unmanned aircraft systems. Awarded by the Army’s training office in Orlando, Fla., the initial order, valued at $11.9 million, includes 25 Shadow crew trainers and interactive multimedia instruction. Including four option years, the contract has a total potential value of $31.1 million. AAI produces and supports a complete family of advanced tactical unmanned aircraft systems flown by the Army, National Guard and Marine Corps.

B of A seeks innovation with MIT

Bank of America has announced a collaboration with the MIT Sloan School of Management’s Laboratory for Financial Engineering in Cambridge, Mass., that will use financial analysis to spur innovation in financial services. This collaboration is part of the Center for Future Banking created at the MIT Media Lab in March. The funding for the lab will support multiple quantitative research efforts that have been jointly developed by the bank and the laboratory. The research themes cover computational finance, quantitative analytics and risk-reward tradeoffs. Andrew Lo, a leading figure in financial theory and practice, will direct the research.

Box maker wins appeal against Conn. town

A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling that the Town of Montville, Conn., must pay $11.5 million to a cardboard-box company in a water dispute. Three years ago a Bridgeport federal jury awarded Rand-Whitney Containerboard millions of dollars because the town had failed to comply with a 1993 agreement with the company. The town said it would provide the quality of water the company needs to produce its paper products, but the company contends the town has not done so. The jury in 2005 found that water treated and returned to Rand-Whitney contained dissolved solids. A panel of three judges for the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York concluded Monday that three of the town’s four requests to reverse various decisions made by the lower court are without merit. The appeals court upheld the town’s fourth request, which is to not pay Rand’s legal fees.

Struggling to keep Gulf of Maine buoys afloat

A network of weather buoys that gives weather forecasters, scientists and mariners detailed information about conditions from Cape Cod to Nova Scotia is in jeopardy because of a funding shortfall. The Gulf Of Maine Ocean Observing System, known as GoMoos, is an arrangement of 11 buoys that serve as floating research stations collecting information such as wind speed and direction, ocean currents, temperature, salinity, oxygen levels and even water clarity. Because of a $450,000 funding shortfall, up to five of those buoys will probably have to be removed this fall, said Tom Shyka, chief operating officer for GoMoos. Twice a year, a team from the University of Maine removes the buoys from the water and trucks them to a facility in Orono, where they are cleaned and repaired. Said Shyka: “Right now the team that deploys the buoys isn’t even preparing some of the buoys because the funding isn’t there.” The $1.2 million a year used to come primarily from the federal government, but as that money has shrunk, more has come from the state and the university system, Shyka said. GoMoos is now appealing to the public to keep the buoys in the water, seeking contributions from businesses, individuals, foundations and others.