Korean-American banks in Southern California are continuing their growth trajectory in the LA County financial institution rankings, particularly showing strength in the lending sector, which has contributed to their performance.

According to a survey by the LA Business Journal (LBJ), based on data from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and bank performance metrics for the first quarter of 2025, Bank of Hope (CEO Kevin Kim) maintained its position in the top tier at 5th place among 40 banks headquartered in LA County. Bank of Hope first entered the top 5 in Q2 2023 and has held this rank since.

The bank’s asset size reached $17.063 billion. Additionally, Bank of Hope ranked 96th among 4,500 commercial banks nationwide, making it the only Korean-American bank in the top 100. (See chart)Following Bank of Hope, Hanmi Bank (CEO Bonnie Lee) ranked 9th with $7.684 billion in assets. PCB Bank (CEO Henry Kim) placed 15th with $3.183 billion, while Open Bank (CEO Sangkyo Oh) and CBB Bank (CEO Richard Koh) ranked 16th and 17th with $2.513 billion and $1.814 billion in assets, respectively.

The largest bank headquartered in LA County is City National Bank, with assets of $93.149 billion. The second-largest is East West Bank, the largest Chinese-American bank in the U.S., with assets of $75.712 billion, surpassing $70 billion. Bank of California ranked 3rd with $33.692 billion, followed by the Chinese-American Cathay Bank at 4th with $23.189 billion.Korean-American banks showed particular strength in the lending sector. In the top 30 rankings for real estate loans, Bank of Hope ranked 5th with $9.747 billion (74% of total loans). Hanmi Bank followed at 8th with $4.951 billion (80%), PCB Bank at 13th with $2.256 billion (83%), Open Bank at 14th with $1.826 billion (90%), and CBB Bank at 16th with $1.344 billion (94%). However, the heavy reliance on real estate loans among Korean-American banks raises concerns about risk management and the need for loan diversification.

In the top 30 rankings for commercial and industrial (C&I) loans, Bank of Hope ranked 4th with $2.97 billion (23% of total loans), Hanmi Bank 8th with $1.258 billion (20%), PCB Bank 14th with $306 million (11%), Open Bank 15th with $223 million (11%), and CBB Bank 19th with $103 million (7%). The proportion of C&I loans needs to increase, and Korean-American banks are urged to train specialized personnel to expand C&I lending to compete with mainstream and Chinese-American banks.

In the top 17 rankings for consumer loans, including credit cards, Bank of Hope ranked 6th with $36 million (0.3% of total loans), PCB Bank 9th with $11 million (0.4%), Hanmi Bank 12th with $7 million (0.1%), and CBB Bank 16th with $3 million (0.2%). Korean-American banks need to make greater efforts in the consumer finance market. In the top 25 deposit share rankings for LA County banks, Bank of Hope held an 11th-place share of 1.77%, while Hanmi Bank ranked 20th with 0.82%, indicating relatively modest shares.

Deposits are dominated by major banks, with JPMorgan Chase leading at 18.93%, followed by Bank of America (16.52%), Wells Fargo Bank (12.45%), City National Bank (9.61%), East West Bank (8.25%), Citibank (5.17%), and U.S. Bank (3.5%).