LOS ANGELES, Sept. 10, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, BBCN Bank and the Office of Mayor Eric Garcetti, co-hosted a trade symposium, "Los Angeles-South Korea: Globalizing Trade between Leading Economies," at City Hall. The event marked the first of future events between the two entities focused on increasing equitable trade relations between Los Angeles and Korea.
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During the symposium, Mayor Eric Garcetti and BBCN Bank President and CEO Kevin S. Kim signed a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") agreeing to work together to promote services and loans to small businesses to enhance and increase opportunities for economic development between Los Angeles and Korea. Among other things noted in the MOU, BBCN will partner with the City of Los Angeles on export development programs and seminars, and the Mayor's Office shall support BBCN in expanding its business operations into Korea.
"Tonight's event and our partnership with Mayor Garcetti are progressive actions that exemplify the growth of the Korean-American business community in the City of Los Angeles," said Kevin S. Kim, President and CEO of BBCN Bank. "It was 40 years ago in 1974 when the first bank focused on the Korean-American community began operations in Los Angeles. Today, Korea is the second largest trading partner to Los Angeles, which represents the largest number of Koreans residing outside of Korea. As the largest Korean-American bank in the nation and headquartered in Los Angeles, BBCN is proud to partner with the City of Los Angeles to foster increased trade with Korea. The signing of the MOU with the City of Los Angeles is a first for any Korean-American company, and we are appreciative of the Mayor's support of BBCN's expansion into Korea, with our planned opening of a representative office during the 2014 fourth quarter and a full-service branch within the next few years."
"I'm pleased to have taken this step with BBCN Bank to expand opportunities for Los Angeles businesses abroad in Seoul, a global business capital, and all of South Korea," said Mayor Eric Garcetti. "Today's event helps cement the already strong ties between our world class city and South Korea, ties which I'll be working to continue to strengthen on my trip to Korea this fall."
The symposium was attended by more than 100 business owners, community leaders and government representatives. Special presentations and a panel discussion were conducted from leading experts in international trade, government and banking, including: Hyun-Myung Kim, Consul General, Korean Consulate General in Los Angeles; Timothy Reif, General Counsel, US Trade Representative Office; Eugene Seroka, Executive Director, Port of Los Angeles; Dong-Hyun Park, Director General, KOTRA; Gregory Moore, Regional Director, Export Import Bank of the U.S.; Carlos Valderama, SVP Global Initiatives, LA Area Chamber; and, Brian Kim, SVP International Trade Finance, BBCN Bank.
About BBCN Bank
BBCN Bank is the largest Korean American bank in the nation with more than $6.9 billion in assets as of June 30, 2014. Headquartered in Los Angeles and a wholly owned subsidiary of BBCN Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq:BBCN), BBCN serves a diverse mix of customers mirroring its communities. BBCN operates 49 branches in California, New York, New Jersey, Washington, Virginia and Illinois, along with six loan production offices in Seattle, Denver, Dallas, Atlanta, Northern California and Annandale, Virginia. BBCN specializes in core business banking products for small and medium-sized businesses, with an emphasis in commercial real estate and business lending, SBA lending and international trade financing. BBCN Bank is a California-chartered bank and its deposits are insured by the FDIC to the extent provided by law. BBCN is an Equal Opportunity Lender.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to economic, competitive, governmental and technological factors affecting the Company's operations, markets, products, services, and pricing. Readers should carefully review the risk factors and the information that could materially affect the Company's financial results and business, described in documents the Company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Reports on Form 10-K, and particularly the discussions of business considerations and certain factors that may affect results of operations set forth therein. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements.
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