EXHIBIT 99.2
          DIVIDEND PRESS RELEASE OF CITIZENS SOUTH BANKING CORPORATION

         CITIZENS SOUTH BANKING CORPORATION DECLARES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND

      GASTONIA, NC, January 26, 2004 --- Kim S. Price, President and Chief
Executive Officer of Citizens South Banking Corporation (Nasdaq: CSBC),
announced today that the Company's Board of Directors has declared a cash
dividend of six cents per share of common stock. The dividend will be payable to
stockholders of record as of February 1, 2004, and will be paid on February 15,
2004.

      Citizens South Banking Corporation is the parent corporation for Citizens
South Bank, which was established in 1904 and is headquartered in Gastonia,
North Carolina. The Bank has ten full-service banking offices located in the
Central Piedmont region of North Carolina. At December 31, 2003, the Company had
assets of $495.5 million, loans of $295.0 million, deposits of $342.4 million,
and stockholders' equity of $87.7 million.

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