State Bank acquires Houston mortgage company - 2004-02-10
La Grange-based State Bank has acquired Community Home Loan Inc. of Houston for an undisclosed amount.

Through its six retail mortgage offices in Houston and one office in San Antonio, Community Home Loan produced about $230 million in loans in 2003. The privately held four-year-old mortgage company will retain its name and operate as a subsidiary of State Bank.
Read the full story at Houston Business Journal

Bank cutting 200 workers - 2004-02-10
Two hundred SI Bank & Trust employees have gotten termination letters as a result of the merger of Staten Island Bancorp and Independence Community Bank, according to officers of the two banks.

Many employees in the home mortgage origination department whose jobs are being discontinued, for example, were originally told the opposite by an unauthorized officer, said Staten Island Bancorp Chief Operating Officer and President Jim Coyle.
Read the full story at Staten Island Live