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Exhibit 23
Consent of Independent Accountants
The Board of Directors
First Niagara Financial Group, Inc.:
We consent to the incorporation by reference in this Form 8-K of First Niagara
Financial Group, Inc. of our report dated January 21, 2000, with respect to the
consolidated balance sheets of Iroquois Bancorp, Inc. and subsidiaries as of
December 31, 1999 and 1998, and the related consolidated statements of income,
shareholders' equity and comprehensive income, and cash flows for each of the
years in the three-year period ended December 31, 1999, which report appears in
the Form 10-K of Iroquois Bancorp, Inc. dated March 13, 2000.
KPMG LLP
Syracuse, New York
January 12, 2001
