MANCHESTER, N.H. - St. Mary's Bank has completed the acquisition of Gateway CU after obtaining approval of the acquisition from the Gateway membership, NCUA and the State of New Hampshire Banking Department. The transaction adds 8,000 new members and nearly $24 million in assets to St. Mary's Bank, the oldest credit union in the U.S. St. Mary's has more than $500 million in assets and a membership of over 50,000. The merger expands St. Mary's Bank to seven branch locations and gives it its first presence in the Southern New Hampshire communities of Nashua and Hudson. Gateway branches will continue to operate under the Gateway name, as a separate division of St. Mary's Bank, until the planned conversion to St. Mary's Bank's systems on Sept. 30, 2005. After that, both Gateway locations will operate as full-service St. Mary's Bank branch offices and members will have access to all St. Mary's Bank locations. At that time also, Gateway members will gain access to a wide array of services already available to St. Mary's Bank members including free checking, online banking and bill pay, instant mortgage approval and access to St. Mary's Financial Services Inc., St. Mary's Insurance Services, St. Mary's Title Services LLC, and a full range of commercial offerings from comprehensive online services, commercial and industrial loans, SBA loans, Business Finance Authority loans to the CU's Credit Union at Work program.