SEE IMPORTANT NOTICE AT THE END OF THIS REPORT
BOARD OF BANK INCORPORATION
There were no applications filed with or pending before the Board of Bank Incorporation in May.
DIVISION OF BANKS
Decisions/Notices
Berkshire Bank, Pittsfield, Massachusetts - permission to establish a branch office at 979 Central Avenue, Albany, New York - approved May 12, 2010.
Enterprise Bank and Trust Company, Lowell, Massachusetts - permission to close a branch office located at 60 Crystal Avenue, Derry, New Hampshire - approved May 20, 2010.
South Coastal Bank, Rockland - permission to close a branch office located at 405 Washington Street, Braintree - approved May 11, 2010.
Applications/Notices Pending
Bank of Cape Cod (the "Bank"), Hyannis - permission to reorganize the Bank into a holding company structure pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Reorganization dated as of February 22, 2010 between the Bank and New England Bancorp, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation formed to effect the reorganization. Comment period ends June 21, 2010.
East Boston Savings Bank, Boston - notice to establish a branch office at 1981-1985 Centre Street, West Roxbury. Filed May 7, 2010.
Eastern Bank, Boston - permission to close a branch office located at 1690 Main Street, Weymouth. Comment period ended May 26, 2010.
Enterprise Bank and Trust Company, Lowell, Massachusetts - permission to establish a branch office at 45 Lowell Road, Hudson, New Hampshire. Filed May 10, 2010.
Mass Bay Credit Union, Boston - permission to amend its by-laws to expand the associations which qualify persons for membership. The amendment relative to membership eligibility proposes to add membership for all employees and former employees of the new Massachusetts Department of Transportation ("MassDOT"), members and former members of Troop E of the Massachusetts State Police as well as former employees of any agency or authority the functions of which have been transferred to MassDOT. The amendment also proposes to add employees of entities with various corporate relationships with MassDOT, as described in the proposed by law. Comment period ended May 25, 2010.
Miscellaneous
First Republic Bank, (in organization), California - permission to acquire two branch offices of First Republic Bank, currently a division of Bank of America, N.A. located at (1) 772 Boylston Street, Boston; and (2) 160 Federal Street, Boston - non-objection issued May 11, 2010.
JUNE 2010 FILING DATE
Complete applications for the June Activity Report must be received by the Division or the Board on or before 5:00 P.M., Tuesday, June 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 Union | Rating | Date of Examination |
|---|---|---|
Bank of New England, Salem, NH | S | 10/26/09 |
Fidelity Co-operative Bank, Fitchburg | S | 02/01/10 |
Seaport Credit Union, Salem | S | 12/28/09 |
The Savings Bank, Wakefield | S | 07/20/09 |
Weymouth Bank, East Weymouth | S | 01/25/10 |
| Mortgage Lender | Rating | Date of Examination |
|---|---|---|
Embrace Home Loans, Inc. | S | 02/02/10 |
Freedom Mortgage Corporation | S | 12/11/09 |
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, Massachusetts - permission to operate a check casher office at 377 Somerville, Ave., Somerville. Comment period ended September 24, 2009.
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.
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 .