Chair, President and
Chief Executive, Hope Bancorp Inc. and Bank of Hope

Kim’s latest employment agreement extends his leadership of the only
super-regional Korean American bank in the United States through
March 2027. The company delivered record profits in 2022, recording
a 7% increase in net income for the full year. Kim joined Center Financial
Corp.’s board in 2008. He led Center’s merger with Nara Bancorp
in 2011, creating BBCN, and then the merger with Wilshire Bancorp in
2016, creating Bank of Hope. Kim serves on the Conference of State
Bank Supervisors’ Bankers Advisory Board.

YEARS ON THE LA500: 8