BOARD OF BANK INCORPORATION
Hearings
July 15, 2004
Fifth Floor, Hearing Room A
One South Station
Boston, Massachusetts
At 10:00 a.m.
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (the "Petitioner), Providence, Rhode Island And Related Parties - permission to acquire directly or indirectly Charter One Financial, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio and its subsidiary Charter One Bank, N.A., Cleveland, Ohio. In Massachusetts, the Petitioner is the holding company for Citizens Bank of Massachusetts and Boston Trust and Management Company, Boston, Massachusetts. Comment period ends July 30, 2004.
Decisions
Independent Bank Corporation (the "Petitioner"), Rockland - permission to acquire Falmouth Bancorp, Inc. and its subsidiary bank, Falmouth Co-operative Bank, Falmouth, Massachusetts. The Petitioner is the holding company for Rockland Trust Company, Rockland, Massachusetts - approved June 16, 2004.
Westfield Bank (the "Petitioner"), Westfield, Massachusetts - permission to convert from a Massachusetts savings bank to a federal savings bank. The proposed transaction will also involve the conversion of the Petitioner's holding company, Westfield Mutual Holding Company, to a federal mutual holding company - approved June 28, 2004.
Applications Pending
Sovereign Bancorp, Inc., (the "Petitoner"), Wyomissing, Pennsylvania - permission to acquire Seacoast Financial Services Corporation, New Bedford, Massachusetts and its subsidiary banks, Compass Bank for Savings ("Compass Bank"), New Bedford and Nantucket Bank, Nantucket, Massachusetts. The Petitioner is the holding company for Sovereign Bank, Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. A related application has been filed with the Division of Banks for approval of the subsequent mergers of Compass Bank and Nantucket Bank with and into Sovereign Bank. Comment period ended June 30, 2004.
DIVISION OF BANKS
Decisions
Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank, Harwich Port - permission to establish a branch office at 763 Main Street, Falmouth - approved June 16, 2004.
Eastern Bank, Boston - permission to relocate a branch office from Redstone Plaza, 103 Main Street, Stoneham to 163 Main Street, Stoneham - approved June 4, 2004.
Eastern Bank, Boston - permission to establish a branch office at 37 Chestnut Street, Needham - approved June 4, 2004.
Rockland Trust Company ("Rockland"), Rockland and Falmouth Co-operative Bank ("Falmouth"), Falmouth - permission to (1) merge Falmouth with and into Rockland under the name, by-laws and charter of Rockland Trust Company; and (2) close branch offices located at 763 Main Street, Falmouth; and 301 Barlows Landing Road, Pocasset - approved June 16, 2004.
Salem Five Cents Savings Bank, Salem - permission to (1) close its branch office located at 5 Paradise Road, Salem; and (2) establish a branch office at 89 Pleasant Street, Marblehead - approved June 30, 2004.
Stoneham Savings Bank, Stoneham - permission to establish a branch office at 4 Hill Road, Belmont - approved June 10, 2004.
Applications Pending
Cambridge Savings Bank, Cambridge - permission to establish a branch office at 202 Sudbury Road, Concord. Comment period ends July 1, 2004.
Citizens Bank of Massachusetts, Boston - permission to establish branch offices with Stop & Shop Supermarkets located at 1) 779 McGrath Highway, Somerville; and 2) 70 Pulaski Boulevard, Bellingham. Comment periods end July 5, 2004.
Compass Bank for Savings ("CompassBank"), New Bedford, Massachusetts and Sovereign Bank ("Sovereign"), Wyomissing Pennsylvania - permission to merge CompassBank with and into Sovereign under the charter, by-laws and name of Sovereign Bank. Comment period ended June 30, 2004.
Eastern Bank, Boston - permission to establish a branch office at 300 Brooksby Village Drive, Peabody. Comment period ends July 15, 2004.
Eastern Bank, Boston - permission to establish a branch office at 2 South Avenue, Natick. Comment period ends July 16, 2004,
First Pioneer Credit Union, Springfield - permission to establish a branch office within Wal-Mart, Fairfield Mall, 591 Memorial Drive, Chicopee. Comment period ends July 16, 2004.
Hingham Institution for Savings, Hingham - permission to establish a branch office at Linden Ponds, 411 Whiting Street, Hingham. Comment period ends July 12, 2004.
Hudson Savings Bank, Hudson - permission to establish a branch office at the corner of Lancaster Street and Viscoloid Avenue, Leominster. Comment period ends July 19, 2004.
Nantucket Bank ("Nantucket"), Nantucket, Massachusetts and Sovereign Bank ("Sovereign"), Wyomissing, Pennsylvania - permission to merge Nantucket with and into Sovereign under the charter, name and by-laws of Sovereign Bank. Comment period ended June 30, 2004.
Postal Community Credit Union, Boston - permission to amend its by-laws to expand the associations which qualify persons for membership. The amendment relative to membership eligibility would now include persons who reside in or are employed by entities with a location in Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth and Suffolk Counties. Comment period ended August 27, 2001.
Slade's Ferry Trust Company, Somerset - permission to (1) close its branch office located at 1601 South Main Street, Fall River; (2) close its branch office located within Walgreen's, 838 Pleasant Street, New Bedford; and (3) establish a branch office at 58 South Main Street, Route 79, Assonet. Comment periods end July 22, 2004.
Southbridge Savings Bank, Southbridge - permission to establish a branch office within Big Y World Class Supermarket, 100 Mayfield Street, Worcester. Comment period ends July 14, 2004.
South Shore Savings Bank Weymouth - permission to establish a branch office at 1520 Turnpike Street, Stoughton. Comment period ends July 1, 2004.
St. Jean's Credit Union ("St. Jean's"), Lynn and Key Credit Union ("Key"), Revere - permission to merge under the charter, by-laws and name of St. Jean's Credit Union. The main office of St. Jean's would remain the main office of the continuing credit union and the banking offices of Key would be retained as branch offices of St. Jean's. Additionally, St. Jean's has filed an application to amend its membership by-law to include Key's membership by-law provisions and to add membership for those who live or work in Norfolk County. Comment periods end July 15, 2004.
The Provident Bank, Amesbury, Massachusetts - permission to establish a branch office at 1950 Lafayette Road, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Comment period ends July 19, 2004.
JULY 2004 FILING DATE
Complete applications for the May Activity Report must be received by the Division or the Board on or before 5:00 P.M., Thursday, July 15, 2004.
COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT ACT DESCRIPTIVE RATINGS AND EVALUATIONS
WHICH BECAME PUBLIC DURING THE MONTH
The following state-chartered institutions have Community Reinvestment Act Descriptive Ratings and Evaluations describing the basis for the Rating issued by the Division of Banks pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws chapter 167, section 14. The ratings, as set out in the statute, for a bank's record of meeting community credit needs are: Outstanding ("O"); High Satisfactory ("HS"); Satisfactory ("S"); Needs to Improve ("NI"); and Substantial Noncompliance ("SNC").
DATE OF | ||
FINANCIAL INSTITUTION | RATING | EXAMINATION |
Boston Globe Employees Credit Union, Boston | S | 03/08/04 |
Butler Bank- A Co-operative Bank, Lowell | S | 10/14/03 |
Cabot Boston Credit Union, Boston | S | 03/22/04 |
Harvard University Employees Credit Union, Cambridge | S | 12/08/03 |
Industrial Credit Union, Boston | S | 04/05/04 |
MBTA Employees Credit Union, South Boston | S | 01/14/04 |
Mercantile Bank & Trust Company, Boston | S | 03/01/04 |
Newburyport Five Cents Savings Bank, Newburyport | S | 02/13/04 |
St. Anne Credit Union, New Bedford | HS | 02/17/04 |
APPLICATIONS TO SELL INSURANCE
Workers' Credit Union, Fitchburg - approved June 10, 2004
TEMPORARY CHECK CASHER LICENSES
Decisions
Plaisance Corporation d/b/a Plaisance Check Cashing, Dorchester, Massachusetts - permission to operate a check casher office at 122 Washington Street, Dorchester, Massachusetts - denied June 16, 2004.
Application Pending
Fast Cash Corp., New Bedford, Massachusetts - permission to operate a check casher office within Costa's Mini Mart, 136 Belleville Road, New Bedford, Massachusetts. Comment period ended Tuesday, June 1, 2004.
Peabody Check Cashing, Inc., Peabody, Massachusetts - permission to operate a check casher office at 101 Ferry Street, Malden, Massachusetts. Comment period ended Wednesday, May 19, 2004.
DIVISION OF BANKS
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
Fifth Floor, Hearing Room A
One South Station
Boston, Massachusetts
At 9:30 a.m.
Pursuant to the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws chapter 255E, section 2 and in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws chapter 30A, section 2, a public hearing will be held on Tuesday, July 13, 2004 at 9:30 a.m., One South Station, Hearing Room A on the Fifth Floor, Boston, Massachusetts, at which oral comments will be received by the Division of Banks (the "Division") relative to the adoption of proposed amendments to 209 CMR 42.00: THE LICENSING OF MORTGAGE LENDERS AND MORTGAGE BROKERS. The primary purposes of the proposed amendments are to clearly state that a mortgage broker may not lock an interest rate on its own behalf or behalf of a lender; to prohibit a mortgage broker from advertising interest rates or loan terms without a clear disclosure that the broker does not originate loans; to require clear disclosure of information by a lender to a consumer in each written rate-lock agreement; to require use of a model "Loan Origination and Compensation Agreement"; and to add definitions for rate-lock commitment and rate-lock commitment fee. The Division has already filed these amendments as Emergency Regulations. Additional changes may be made based on comments received at the public hearing or during the comment period.
The Division is also seeking advance comments on potential rulemaking relative to increasing the net worth requirement for mortgage lenders and establishing a net worth requirement for mortgage brokers.
Written comments may be submitted to the Division on the proposed regulations until 5:00 p.m. on Friday, July 16, 2004. A copy of the proposed amendments is available at, and copies may be obtained from, the Massachusetts Division of Banks, One South Station, Boston, Massachusetts 02110.
PLEASE NOTE: All publications of the Division of Banks are now delivered electronically. To subscribe, simply send an email to:
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If you need assistance or have questions, please contact Bernard N. Waxman at 617.956.1571.
For information relative to current Activity Reports please contact the Consumer Assistance Unit.