Pursuant to Rule 425 under the  Securities
                                      Act of 1933  and deemed  filed pursuant to
                                      Rule 14a-12 under the Securities  Exchange
                                      Act of 1934.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Full text available on PR Newswire

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
John G. Martines, President and CEO
Phone:  (570) 343-8200


                   LA BANK TO ACQUIRE SOVEREIGN BANK BRANCHES

         Scranton,  PA --May 10, 2000 - LA Bank,  N.A. of Scranton  announced it
has reached a definitive  agreement  with  Sovereign Bank for LA Bank to acquire
six  Sovereign   offices   located  in  Susquehanna   County  with  a  total  of
approximately $90 million in deposits and $50 million in loans.

         LA Bank is a subsidiary  bank of NBT Bancorp  Inc., a $2.0 billion bank
holding company headquartered in Norwich, NY.

         Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

         The  transaction  is subject to the approval of regulatory  authorities
and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2000.

         John G. Martines,  President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "We are
particularly  excited about the purchase of these offices.  For some time now we
have  been  exploring  the   possibilities  of  providing  banking  services  to
individuals and businesses in these Susquehanna County communities and now we'll
be able to expand our customer base."

         "LA Bank has the  resources  and  commitment to provide a continuity of
high  quality  service  to the  customers  of these  offices,  and we will  work
together  to ensure a smooth and  seamless  integration,"  stated Jay S.  Sidhu,
Sovereign's  President  and Chief  Executive  Officer.  "This sale  allows us to
direct our resources and refine the markets in which we invest our capital."

         LA Bank, N.A.,  currently operates 22 banking facilities in Lackawanna,
Luzerne, Monroe, Pike and Wayne Counties.

         Additional information on LA Bank, N.A. is available on the Internet at
www.labank.com.

         This press release may be deemed to be solicitation material in respect
of the proposed  acquisition of Pioneer American Holding Company Corp. ("Pioneer
American")  by NBT Bancorp  Inc.  ("NBT")  through the merger of a  wholly-owned
subsidiary  of NBT with Pioneer  American,  pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of
Merger,  dated as of December  7, 1999 and  amended as of March 7, 2000,  by and
among  NBT,  a  wholly-owned  subsidiary  of  NBT,  and  Pioneer  American  (the
"Agreement").  Filing of this press  release is being  made in  connection  with
Regulation of Takeovers and Security Holder Communications (Release No. 33-7760,
34-42055) promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC").

         NBT and its  directors  and  executive  officers  may be  deemed  to be
participants  in the  solicitation  of proxies  in  respect of the  transactions
contemplated by the Agreement.  These directors and executive  officers  include
the following: Daryl R. Forsythe, Michael J. Chewens, Martin A. Dietrich, Joe C.
Minor, John D. Roberts,  Everett A. Gilmour, J. Peter Chaplin, Peter B. Gregory,
William C. Gumble,  Bruce D. Howe,  Andrew S.  Kowalczyk,  Jr., Dan B. Marshman,
John G. Martines, John C. Mitchell, William L. Owens and Paul O. Stillman. As of
March 31, 2000, these directors and executive officers beneficially owned in the
aggregate 1,417,878 shares, or approximately  7.83%, of NBT's outstanding common
stock.

         In connection  with the proposed  merger,  NBT has filed a registration
statement  on SEC  Form S-4 with the  SEC,  File No.  333-30988,  which  the SEC
declared  effective on April 3, 2000. NBT and Pioneer American have prepared and
mailed to their  respective  stockholders  a joint  proxy  statement/prospectus,
dated April 3, 2000 (the "Proxy Statement/Prospectus"). NBT and Pioneer American
will  prepare  and  file  with  the  SEC  a  post-effective   amendment  to  the
aforementioned S-4 registration statement,  which will include a supplement (the
"Supplement")  to  the  Proxy  Statement/Prospectus.  Stockholders  of  NBT  are
encouraged to read the post-effective amendment and the Supplement because these
documents  will  contain  important  information  about  the  merger.  After the
post-effective  amendment is filed with the SEC, it will be available  for free,
both on the SEC's web site  (www.sec.gov) and from NBT's corporate  secretary.
The Form S-4 registration statement and the Proxy  Statement/Prospectus can also
be obtained at no cost in the same manner.



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