LOS ANGELES, CA - July 9, 2003 - Center Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:CLFC), the parent of Center Bank, today announced it has been added to the Russell 2000(R) Index. Frank Russell Company posted the final list of companies in its family of U.S. indexes today, following their reconstitution on June 30, 2003. As part of the small-cap Russell 2000, Center Financial will also be included in Russell 3000(R) Index.

"Being included in the Russell 2000 index is a major milestone for Center Financial," stated Paul Seon-Hong Kim, President and CEO. "We are justifiably proud that Wall Street has noticed our performance - not only our increased earnings, but also the outstanding work our lending team has done in improving the quality of our loan portfolio."

Russell indexes are widely used by investment managers for index funds and as benchmarks for both passive and active strategies. About $220 billion is invested in index funds based on Russell's indexes and an additional $850 billion is benchmarked to them. Investment managers who oversee these funds purchase shares of member stocks according to that company's weighting in the particular index.

Membership in Russell's 21 U.S. equity indexes is determined by objective rules, such as market capitalization rankings. Annual reconstitution of the Russell indexes captures the 3,000 largest U.S. stocks as of the end of May, ranking them by total market capitalization to create the Russell 3000. The largest 1,000 companies in the ranking comprise the Russell 1000 while the remaining 2,000 companies become the widely used Russell 2000.

Frank Russell Company, a global leader in multi-manager investment services, provides investment products and services in more than 35 countries. Russell manages $67 billion in assets and advises clients worldwide representing US$1.6 trillion. Founded in 1936, Russell is a subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual and is headquartered in Tacoma, Wash., with additional offices in New York, Toronto, London, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Auckland and Tokyo. For more information, go to www.russell.com. In April, Center Financial announced its first quarter net income increased 18% to $2.5 million, or $.32 per diluted share, compared to $2.1 million, or $.29 per share, in the first quarter of 2002. Its net loans increased 44% to $580 million at the end of March compared to $402 million one year earlier.

About Center Financial Corporation

Center Financial Corporation is a financial holding company formed in 2002 and is the parent company of Center Bank. Founded in 1986, Center Bank is a community bank offering a full-range of financial services. Center Bank changed its name to Center Bank from California Center Bank in December of 2002. It specializes in commercial and SBA loans and trade finance products for multi-ethnic and small business customers. The Bank operates 13 branches throughout Southern California and four Loan Production Offices located in Phoenix, Seattle, Denver and Washington D.C. It is one of the largest financial institutions in the nation focusing on the Korean-American community. Further information about the Company can be found at www.centerbank.com.