EWBC East West Bancorp Inc

PASADENA, Calif., March 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC), parent company of East West Bank, one of the nation's premier community banks, today announced that its board of directors authorized an increase in the stock repurchase program to buy back an additional $50.0 million of the Company's common stock in 2007. This new authorization is in addition to the $30.0 million stock repurchase authorized and completed during the first quarter of 2007. "We are pleased to announce that the Board of Directors authorized a $50.0 million increase in the stock repurchase program," stated Dominic Ng, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of East West. "We are focused on providing long-term shareholder value. Our strong financial condition and healthy growth allow us to continue our strategy of returning capital to shareholders," concluded Ng. About East West East West Bancorp is a publicly owned company, with $10.8 billion in assets, whose stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "EWBC". The company's wholly owned subsidiary, East West Bank, is the second largest independent commercial bank headquartered in Los Angeles with 61 branch locations. East West Bank serves the community with 59 branch locations across Southern and Northern California and a branch location in Houston, Texas. East West Bank has two international locations in Greater China, including a full-service branch in Hong Kong and a Beijing Representative Office in China. For more information on East West Bancorp, visit the company's website at http://www.eastwestbank.com/. Forward-Looking Statements This release may contain forward-looking statements, which are included in accordance with the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and accordingly, the cautionary statements contained in East West Bancorp's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2006 (See Item I -- Business, and Item 7 -- Management's Discussion and Analysis of Consolidated Financial Condition and Results of Operations), and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission are incorporated herein by reference. These factors include, but are not limited to: the effect of interest rate and currency exchange fluctuations; competition in the financial services market for both deposits and loans; EWBC's ability to efficiently incorporate acquisitions into its operations; the ability of EWBC and its subsidiaries to increase its customer base; the effect of regulatory and legislative action, including California tax legislation and an announcement by the state's Franchise Tax Board regarding the taxation of Registered Investment Companies; and regional and general economic conditions. Actual results and performance in future periods may be materially different from any future results or performance suggested by the forward-looking statements in this release. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. East West expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements found herein to reflect any changes in the Bank's expectations of results or any change in event. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AT THE COMPANY: Julia Gouw Chief Financial Officer (626) 768-6898 DATASOURCE: East West Bancorp, Inc. CONTACT: Julia Gouw, Chief Financial Officer of East West Bancorp, Inc., +1-626-768-6898 Web site: http://www.eastwestbank.com/

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