Banknorth Quarterly Dividend 19 Cents Per Share

Portland, Maine - Banknorth Group, Inc. (NYSE: BNK) has announced that its Board of Directors has approved a quarterly dividend of 19 cents per share based on earnings for the third quarter ended September 30, 2003. The dividend is 27% higher than the quarterly dividend paid following the third quarter a year ago and level with the dividend paid following the second quarter of 2003.

The dividend will be paid on November 10, 2003 to shareholders of record on October 31, 2003. The Company announced record quarterly net income of $90.5 million, or 55 cents per diluted share, for the quarter ended September 30, 2003.

Banknorth Group, headquartered in Portland, Maine, is one of the country's 35 largest commercial banking companies with $25.7 billion in assets. The Company's banking subsidiary, Banknorth, N.A., operates banking divisions in Connecticut (Banknorth Connecticut); Maine (Peoples Heritage Bank); Massachusetts (Banknorth
Massachusetts); New Hampshire (Bank of New Hampshire); New York (Evergreen Bank); and Vermont (Banknorth Vermont). The Company and Banknorth, N.A. also operate subsidiaries and divisions in insurance, money management, merchant services,
mortgage banking, government banking and other financial services and offers investment products in association with PrimeVest Financial Services, Inc. The Company's website is at www.banknorth.com.

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