Center Financial Extends Jae Whan Yoo's Leadership as President & CEO.

LOS ANGELES -- The board of directors of Center Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:CLFC), the holding company of Center Bank, today announced it has voted to renew the employment contract of Jae Whan (J.W.) Yoo as president and chief executive officer of the company for an additional three-year period through January 2013. Yoo joined Center Financial in his current position in January 2007 and will continue to serve as a member of the board.

Chairman of the Board Jin Chul Jhung said, "Retaining the right leadership is essential to the health of a financial institution, particularly in such a challenging economic environment as we have today. With more than three decades of banking experience, J.W. has faced major economic and credit cycle downturns in the U.S. and in Korea. We believe his extensive knowledge and understanding of the financial markets will help us navigate the company through the current crisis. The board and I look forward to working collaboratively with him to ensure Center Financial's long-term success."

About Center Financial Corporation

Center Financial Corporation is the holding company of Center Bank, a community bank offering a full range of financial services for diverse ethnic and small business customers. Founded in 1986 and specializing in commercial and SBA loans and trade finance products, Center Bank has grown to be one of the nation's leading financial institutions focusing on the Korean-American community, with total assets of $2.27 billion at June 30, 2009. Headquartered in Los Angeles, Center Bank operates a total of 19 full-service branches and one loan production office. The company has 16 full-service branches located throughout Southern California. Center Bank also operates two branches and one loan production office in the Seattle area, along with one branch in Chicago. Center Bank is a California state-chartered institution and its deposits are insured by the FDIC to the extent provided by law. For additional information on Center Bank, visit the company's Web site at www.centerbank.com.

This release contains forward-looking statements, which are included in accordance with the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve significant risks and uncertainties, and 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. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those identified in our cautionary statements contained in Center Financial Corp.'s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008 (See Business, and Management's Discussion and Analysis), and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are incorporated herein by reference. These factors include, but are not limited to: competition in the financial services market for both deposits and loans; the ability of Center Financial and its subsidiaries to increase its customer base; changes in interest rates; new litigation or changes or adverse developments in existing litigation; and regional and general economic conditions. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. Center Financial expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements found herein to reflect any changes in the company's expectations of results or any change in events.