GBC Bancorp Provides Preliminary First Quarter Results; Conference Call and Web Cast Scheduled for April 18.

Business Editors

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 11, 2002

GBC Bancorp (Nasdaq:GBCB), parent company of General Bank, announced that two commercial loans totaling $27 million as of March 31, 2002 to two companies in the metal importing and trading business are potential problem loans due to liquidity problems associated with the companies' relationships with their financing institutions. The loans are collateralized by receivables and inventory, and the receivables are covered by insolvency risk insurance with certain exclusions. We cannot estimate at this time the extent to which the collateral plus insurance coverage will repay the loans.

In addition, due to the uncertainty of the timing and amount of recovery, we have decided to record an additional $5.4 million charge-off associated with a participated commercial loan, reducing its value on our books to zero.

These three loans were revolving commercial lines of credit to borrowers with credit facilities from major banks. We realize that these credits involved risks outside of the Bank's normal lending portfolio. We will re-evaluate our risk management of these types of credit.

Although the quarter-end review of the loan portfolio and the required allowance for credit losses are not complete at this time, we estimate that we will record a provision for credit losses of approximately $18.5 million in the 1st quarter, 2002, including $17.7 million for the above credits. This includes the effect of the above potential problem loans together with the losses associated with the rest of the loan portfolio.

Unrelated to the foregoing, we include in other investments a 10% equity ownership in the beneficial interests of an aircraft finance trust ("AFT") totaling $6.1 million as of December 31, 2001, which amount was exclusive of an other comprehensive loss amount of $3.8 million. This amount reduced the carrying value of AFT. AFT owns 36 aircraft on lease to different lessees in various countries. GBC accounts for this investment using the equity method. In its audited financial statements, AFT disclosed a $28.4 million impairment expense for the write-down of three aircraft in its 4th quarter, bringing AFT's total impairment expense in 2001 to $46.5 million for the write-down of five aircraft. Including its share of this impairment expense, GBC will record a $3.0 million loss in the 1st quarter. Our remaining investment is $3.1 million before the remaining other comprehensive loss amount of $3.1 million.

As a result of the foregoing, we estimate that we will record a net loss for the quarter of approximately $3.0 million. For reference purposes, we reported in our audited 2001 financial statements, pre-tax income before the provision for credit losses of $62.0 million.

Members of the public are invited to listen to the Company's live quarterly call on the Internet, on Thursday, April 18, 2002, at 9:30 a.m. PT / 12:30 p.m. ET. The conference call will feature Li-Pei Wu, Chairman of the Board, and Peter Wu, president and CEO of GBC Bancorp, in a discussion of first-quarter results and recent operating developments.

Financial results will be released over the news wires after the market closes on Wednesday, April 17, 2002. The public will have the opportunity to listen to the live conference call over the Internet on the Investor Relations section of the Company's Website at www.generalbank.com. For those who cannot listen to the live broadcast, a replay will be available shortly after the call.

Certain statements contained herein, including without limitation, statements containing the words "estimated," "anticipates," "believes," "expects," and words of similar import, constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following: general economic and business conditions in those areas in which the Company operates; competition; fluctuations in interest rates; changes in business strategy or development plans; changes in governmental regulation; and credit quality. Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on such forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any obligation to update any such factors or to publicly announce the results of any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect future events or developments.