Kevin Kim — Hope Bancorp Inc.

President and Chief Executive

THE LATEST: Kim heads Hope Bancorp Inc., parent of Bank of Hope, which was formed in 2016 in the merger of Wilshire Bancorp and BBCN Bancorp, where Kim had been chief executive. Kim’s bank was hit by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, with revenues declining 35% year over year to $111.5 million.
BACKGROUND: Kim began his involvement on the boards of Korean American banks in 2008 when he joined the board of Center Financial Corp. He helped Center raise capital and led its merger with Nara Bancorp in 2011, which created BBCN. Kim was a lawyer and an accountant before he joined BBCN as chief executive in 2013, leading the company’s efforts for strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions, business-line and revenue diversification, and capital management strategy. Kim serves on the board of the United Way of Greater Los Angeles.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 6
Return to the 2021 edition of the LA500.