East West Bancorp Inc. said late Tuesday that former senior executive Julia Gouw would return to the company as chief operating officer, helping with the integration of the bank’s major new acquisition.

The Pasadena holding company of East West Bank said Gouw also will hold the title of president and be responsible for East West’s key administrative operations, including finance, treasury, investor relations and human resources.

Gouw will oversee integration of the banking operations of United Commercial Bank, which was acquired by East West Nov. 6 after being closed by regulators. East West Bank nearly doubled in size with the acquisition and became the largest bank headquartered in Los Angeles.

Gouw first joined East West Bank in 1989 as controller, and eventually rose to the positions of chief financial officer and vice chairman before retiring in 2008. She remained a bank director after leaving the company. U.S. Banker magazine four times ranked Gouw among its “25 Most Powerful Women in Banking” and Institutional Investor magazine twice named her among the “Best CFO’s in America.”

“We are fortunate to have Julia rejoin the bank … at this key milestone in the bank’s history,” said Chief Executive Dominic Ng in a statement.

East West shares closed up 11 cents, or less than 1 percent, to $14.70 on the Nasdaq prior to the announcement.