By the Division of Banks

SEE IMPORTANT NOTICE AT THE END OF THIS REPORT

BOARD OF BANK INCORPORATION

There are no hearings for September before the Board of Bank Incorporation

NOTE: Applications have been filed for multi-step transactions involving the Board and the Division by:

  • Eastern Bank Corporation, Boston to acquire Wainwright Bank & Trust Company, Boston
  • People's United Financial, Inc., Bridgeport, Connecticut to acquire River Bank, North Andover, Massachusetts.

Hearings on these multi-step transactions will likely be held in early October 2010.

DIVISION OF BANKS

Decisions/Notices

Century Bank and Trust Company, Somerville - notice to establish a branch office at 32 Langley Road, Newton - non-objection issued August 13, 2010.

Danversbank, Danvers - notice to establish a branch office at 218 Cambridge Street, Boston - non-objection issued August 27, 2010.

Hampden Bank, Springfield - notice to establish a branch office at 981 Boston Road, Springfield - non-objection issued August 3, 2010.

Institution for Savings in Newburyport and its Vicinity, Newburyport - notice to establish a branch office at 112 County Road, Ipswich - non-objection issued August 23, 2010.

Pentucket Bank, Haverhill - permission to relocate a branch office from 235 Lincoln Avenue, Haverhill to 114 Lincoln Avenue, Haverhill - approved August 3, 2010.

State Street Bank and Trust Company, Boston, Massachusetts - permission to relocate a branch office from 88 Phillip Street, Sydney, Australia to 420 George Street, Sydney, Australia - approved August 31, 2010.

Applications/Notices Pending

OneUnited Bank, Boston, Massachusetts - permission to close its branch office located at 2412 North State Road 7, Lauderdale Lakes, Florida. Comment period ends September 3, 2010.

Tremont Credit Union, Boston - permission to relocate its main office location from 333 Longwood Avenue, Boston to 342 Longwood Avenue, Boston. Comment period ends September 24, 2010.

SEPTEMBER 2010 FILING DATE

Complete applications for the September Activity Report must be received by the Division or the Board on or before 5:00 P.M., Wednesday, September 15, 2010.

COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT ACT DESCRIPTIVE RATINGS AND EVALUATIONS
WHICH BECAME PUBLIC DURING THE MONTH

The following state-chartered banks and credit unions and licensed mortgage lenders have Community Reinvestment Act descriptive ratings and evaluations describing the basis for the rating issued by the Division of Banks. The ratings, as set out in statute, for a bank's or credit union's record of meeting community credit needs are: Outstanding ("O"); High Satisfactory ("HS"); Satisfactory ("S"); Needs to Improve ("NI"); and Substantial Noncompliance ("SNC"). Licensed mortgage lenders are also assigned one of these ratings to describe their record of meeting the mortgage credit needs in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

A consolidated list of all ratings can be found at www.mass.gov/dob.

A copy of an individual CRA evaluation is available directly from the bank, credit union, or mortgage lender which is required by law to make the material available upon request, or from the Division's web site.

Bank/Credit UnionRatingDate of Examination

Avidia Bank, Hudson

S

04/05/10

Middlesex Savings Bank, Natick

O

11/30/09

Nuvo Bank & Trust Company, Springfield

S

04/26/10

The Co-operative Bank, Roslindale

S

03/08/10

Webster Five Cents Savings Bank, Webster

O

12/21/09


Mortgage lenderRatingDate of Examination

Pulte Mortgage LLC

S

03/02/10

Sierra Pacific Mortgage Company, Inc.

S

02/15/10

APPLICATIONS TO SELL INSURANCE

Northern Massachusetts Telephone Workers Community Credit Union, Lowell - pending Southbridge Credit Union, Southbridge - pending

CHECK CASHER LICENSES

Applications Pending

Bennington Convenience Store, Inc. d/b/a Sava's Market, East Boston - permission to operate a check casher office at 150 Bennington Street, East Boston. Comment period ended June 18, 2009.

Braz Transfers, Inc., Somerville - permission to operate a check casher office at 377 Somerville, Ave., Somerville. Comment period ended September 24, 2009.

St. James Checking, Inc., Springfield - permission to operate a check casher office at 70 Main Street, Greenfield. Comment period ends September 7, 2010.

Vasquez Check Cashing, Inc., New Bedford - permission to operate a check casher office at 1292 Acushnet Ave., New Bedford. Comment period ended May 13, 2010.

Wal-Mart Stores East, LP d/b/a Wal-Mart Stores, Bentonville, Arkansas - permission to operate a check casher office at 25 Tobias Boland Way, Worcester. Comment period ended August 19, 2010.

REGULATIONS

Amendments to the Division of Banks' Regulation 209 CMR 50.00: Parity with Federal Credit Unions became effective on August 20, 2010.

BANK AND CREDIT UNION APPLICATION PROCESS TIMING

As a general rule, applications by banks and credit unions other than those that are subject to a review period set out in statute are intended to be processed and completed within the monthly cycle for which the bank and credit union applies. That review period for such processing is approximately 45 days or less from the date the application is filed with the Division. A decision on the application is generally issued within 5 business days after the review period is completed. The decision then will be reported on the monthly Activity Report for the month in which the decision was issued. The timing of the overall review process including the issuance of a decision and the listing on the monthly Activity Report will be dependent on the applicant's compliance with all statutory, regulatory and administrative requirements. Applications before the Massachusetts Board of Bank Incorporation are subject to separate timing schedules as set out in the applications of the Board.

IMPORTANT NOTICE ON CHANGE IN APPLICATION PROCESS

The Division of Banks has an ongoing initiative to reduce paperwork. Among other things, the application process is being changed. All applications filed with the Division and the Board of Bank Incorporation, except those filed electronically pursuant to FDICconnect shall now consist of one printed copy as well as a submission in an electronic media format preferably a compact disk or USB drive. Banks and credit unions, as well as counsel for such institutions, are advised to submit ONLY the information requested in the application. Accordingly, the submission should not include, among other things, entire Annual Reports, entire public CRA Statements, copies of applications to the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of Thrift Supervision, and the National Credit Union Administration. Additionally, please be advised that certain comparative analyses on deposit and loan overlap among other materials in corporate transactions are being reduced in conjunction with the revised applications.

Only one hardcopy and a submission in an electronic media format (e.g., a compact disk or USB drive) will be accepted for purposes of filing an application. Any additional materials submitted will, at the discretion of the Division, either be returned at the Petitioner's expense or destroyed. A petitioner is responsible for the actions of its counsel or consultant.

All applications are being reviewed and amended to reflect this new policy. As always, the Division or the Board reserves the right to request supplemental material to be filed on any application or particular question. Petitioners and their counsel must adjust their own internal filing procedures to reflect these significant changes by the Division.

All Board of Bank Incorporation applications are covered by this policy.

Division applications that are covered by this policy are all bank and credit union merger, acquisition and membership by-law change applications, as well as all bank and credit union branch office and main office related applications except for notices to establish branch offices. Also covered are all bank applications (e.g. mutual holding company reorganizations) filed in connection with a transaction before the Board of Bank Incorporation.

Applications that are not covered by this policy are letter applications by banks and credit unions to the Division that do not appear on the Activity Report. Also not covered by this policy are bank and credit union notices to establish branch offices.

PLEASE NOTE: All publications of the Division of Banks are now delivered electronically. To subscribe, simply send an email to:

dobactivityreport-subscribe@listserv.state.ma.us

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 .