East West Bank

Give it up for the mellifluous melodies of MUSE/IQUE! Led by Artistic Director, Conductor and Director Rachael Worby, our community partner has some great programming in store for those of you in SoCal. Playing off the theme “Make Some Noise” for their 2024 season program, MUSE/IQUE presents artists who took bold stances and challenged norms with their works and performances. We are pleased to be a longtime supporter of this curatorially creative force in our community.

Upcoming performances include:

🎼 “Plenty of Heart, Plenty of Hope: The Making of Oklahoma! and the Broadway Musical" (July)

🎵 “Freedom at the Moulin Rouge: A Las Vegas Civil Rights Story” (August and September)

🎶 “Indivisible: The Glory of Lincoln’s Musical Soul” (October)

Check out the full schedule: https://www.muse-ique.com/

📷: MUSE/IQUE’s “The Judas of Folk: Dylan Plugs in” open house event in Pasadena’s Memorial Park on June 22.

The Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) held its grand opening in New York last fall, attracting a crowd of more than 600 dignitaries and prestigious guests. As an inaugural sponsor, East West Bank helped cap a 20-year vision to rebuild the World Trade Center (WTC) complex and establish Lower Manhattan as a cultural destination. The Perelman Performing Arts Center is the cultural cornerstone and final public element of the WTC site, delivering a unique venue for theater, dance, music, chamber opera, film and media. The Bank’s support of this inspiring effort reiterates our commitment to building new foundations and hopeful beginnings.

Read more about East West’s commitment to the arts in our Annual Report: https://issuu.com/eastwestbankar/docs/ewb_art_2023_annual_report_031924_issuu/24

Check out the offerings at this cultural destination here: https://pacnyc.org/

Some 15 million people in the U.S. are self-employed. That's about 10% of the workforce.* Self-employed individuals face several unique challenges on the journey to buying a home—one of which is having a variable income stream. But there are lenders who know the path well, and programs to help you qualify.

Find out more about our home loan options for unique borrowers: https://www.eastwestbank.com/en/personal-banking/home-mortgage-loans



*U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Congratulations to our brand and culture ambassador Rose Zhang on being named to Team USA’s Women’s Golf Team for the Olympics! Rose joins two-time Olympian and Tokyo 2020 gold medalist Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu. Join us in cheering them on from the virtual sidelines!



📷: Getty Images / Warren Little

Count us in. For three out of four Americans, homeownership is a key part of the American dream, a place to put down roots and build generational wealth. For National Homeownership Month, we embrace those in the diverse communities we serve who aspire to make this dream a reality.

Find out more about how we can help: https://www.eastwestbank.com/en/personal-banking/home-mortgage-programs

We speak home loans (as well as Spanish, Mandarin and Cantonese). June is National Homeownership Month, an opportune time to meet some of the folks from our multilingual mortgage lending team: From left—Alex Islas, VP-Mortgage Community Outreach Officer; Nicole Mei, AVP-Mortgage Loan Advisor; Bella Qu, AVP-Mortgage Customer Experience Manager; Alice Lai, SVP-Head of Mortgage Banking; Irene Young, VP-Mortgage Support Manager; and Ian Du, Mortgage Loan Advisor.

“Our team provides personalized services in the home-buying process, including helping unique borrowers find the right mortgage for their unique situation,” says Alice.

Today we commemorate the end of slavery in the United States, noting that Juneteenth is “a celebration of progress,” as former President Barack Obama said. “It's an affirmation that despite the most painful parts of our history, things do get better. America can change.”

Our U.S. branches are closed in observance of the holiday.

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A spotlight on the talent behind the stars, sports teams and cutting-edge new media companies! Congrats to our own Maytal Shainberg, our Managing Director, New Media Group, and David Acosta, our Managing Director, Head of Entertainment Banking, on being recognized among the Los Angeles Times B2B Publishing Entertainment Business Visionaries! 🌟

Leveraging her 15+ years of experience in the new media, advertising and technology industries, Maytal works with customers across the diverse sectors of mobile games, podcasts, adtech, social media and multi-channel network businesses. Her customer base includes Scopely, Tastemade, Channel Factory, VideoAmp and Sovrn Holdings Inc.

Focusing on clients in the film, television, music and sports industries, David brings nearly two decades of experience in the entertainment and media financing business. He leads a team responsible for sourcing and structuring financings for various entertainment sectors, including single- and multiple-picture film financing, television productions, sports teams, music companies and other media businesses.

Read more about Maytal (https://www.latimes.com/b2bpublishing/entertainment-business-visionaries/maytal-shainberg) and David (https://www.latimes.com/b2bpublishing/entertainment-business-visionaries/david-acosta).

Our Chairman and CEO Dominic Ng is featured in the Los Angeles Times L.A. Influential’s “The Money,” on business leaders making change in the City of Angels! At the helm of East West for more than 30 years, Dominic has steered the Bank and the communities we serve toward greater prosperity. While elevating the artistic and business profile of Los Angeles, he has also helped bridge economic opportunities across the Asia-Pacific.

“His leadership has transformed the bank, transformed philanthropy and what business leadership looks like in L.A.,” said Elise Buik, CEO, United Way of Greater Los Angeles.

Read more about Dominic, who joins other L.A. Influential changemakers including Beyoncé, Steve Ballmer, Jay-Z and Magic Johnson: https://www.latimes.com/la-influential/story/2024-06-16/dominic-ng-east-west-bancorp

United Way

What a colorful turnout! From our board of directors to our associates, diversity is in our DNA. With the support of our LGBTQ+ & Allies Employee Resource Group (ERG), our Pasadena associates celebrated Pride Month with light bites and refreshments, aura photography exploring one’s uniqueness, and an LGBTQ+ inspired library including a collection of books, films, and podcasts showcasing LGBTQ+ voices and stories. 🌈 🙌 ❤️

How are you celebrating Pride? Leave a comment below.

Congratulations to Kitty Chen, our Senior Managing Director, Head of Retail and Business Banking, for winning Executive of the Year at the Los Angeles Business Journal Women’s Leadership Symposium. During her decades-long career, Kitty has been a trailblazer in an industry where Asian women are under-represented in senior leadership roles. We honor Kitty for her commitment to making banking more accessible and bridging the gap for customers of all age, income and education levels. Today’s event brought together the top businesswomen in Los Angeles, who shared their wisdom through a series of dynamic discussions covering topics such as leading with authenticity and embracing technology and innovation.

This Homeownership Month, we lift our hard hats to our Habitat for Humanity partners across the country. Like Habitat, we are dedicated to bridging the homeownership gap in this country at a time when affordable housing is needed more than ever. 🏡

Women are disproportionately affected by housing insecurity in the U.S. As the foundation sponsor of San Gabriel Valley Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build 2024, East West Bank recruited volunteers—both women and their allies—to build the framing for a home in Azusa, California, alongside the future homeowners. Leading our crew’s building efforts was Robert Lo, EVP, Head of Commercial Real Estate Banking and SGV Habitat for Humanity board member.

Check out the KABC7 feature here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryr1WVeothE

🌟 What an incredible day at the 54th annual L.A. Pride Parade! 🎉 As part of our celebrations, our LGBTQ+ Allies Group joined 164 other parade entrants to show our support for the LGBTQ+ community this past weekend. 🌈 As a bank founded 51 years ago to serve the underrepresented, diversity and inclusion are more than just values—they’re part of our DNA. That’s why we’re proud to champion equality for all every day. ❤️

A step toward bridging the affordable housing gap for seniors in Northern California. This week, John Chan, SVP-Senior Relationship Manager, Commercial Real Estate Banking, joined Standard Communities for the grand opening of Aspen Wood, a public-private senior housing community in San Ramon, where the cost of living is estimated to be 140% of the national average. East West Bank provided construction and long-term financing for the project, which provides 123 units of affordable housing for seniors with incomes between 30% and 60% of the Area Median Income. Amenities at the 130K-square-foot community include a recreation deck/courtyard, fitness center, business center, community room and a pet spa.

The need for affordable, quality housing continues to increase each year. East West Bank is committed to addressing the ongoing crisis by supporting such projects and building relationships in the communities we serve. 🏠 🙌

Breaking the bamboo ceiling in style. This , we spotlight designer Laura Kim, co-creative director of Oscar de la Renta. Laura has made an indelible mark on her industry—and at the MET Gala—while shaping diverse teams at Oscar and her own award-winning brand, Monse, while giving back to her community.
👇 Link in comments.

Today we honor and remember the brave men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Our U.S. branches are closed in observance of the holiday.

Congratulations to our Chairman and CEO Dominic Ng on receiving an honorary doctorate from the University of Houston’s C. T. Bauer College of Business! The degree was conferred at UH’s commencement ceremony earlier this month. Go Cougars!

A great place to experience heritage this month is San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum, a must-visit gem with approximately 18,000 works of art and artifacts from all major Asian countries and traditions. As a supporter of diversity and inclusion through the arts, East West Bank partnered with the museum on last year’s unveiling of the East West Bank Art Terrace, a 7,500-square-foot space that is San Francisco’s largest rooftop art experience. Boasting cityscape views, the terrace showcases sculptures from emerging and world-renowned Asian and artists, including Berkeley-born artist Ala Ebtekar’s “Luminous Ground.” Ebtekar’s installation is composed of more than 1,000 ceramic tiles—made of clay from California’s Central Valley by a Fresno-based Japanese American family—spangled with sunlight-exposed cyanotype images of galaxies from the Hubble telescope, reminiscent of celestial blue Persian ceramic glazes in the Museum’s collection.

Read more about our commitment to the arts in our Annual Report (link in bio), and visit our community partner at asianart.org.

📷: Artist Ala Ebtekar stands in front of his work “Luminous Ground.” Photo by Ian Chin Photography.

Asia Society Southern California (ASSC, ) annual gala tonight honored Asian American visionaries and champions from business, arts, culture, entertainment and sports. Our Chairman & CEO Dominic Ng congratulated honorees and friends: “Real Estate Visionary” Christina Gaw of who leads a thriving private equity real estate company, and “Art Visionary” Adrian Cheng () who is innovating culture in Asia by operating on the cutting edge of art and commerce.

Other honorees included "Music Visionary" Ray Chen (); "Business Visionary” Masayuki Hyodo; “Medical Visionary” Dr. Richard Lee and "Sports Visionary" Gene Sykes.

No small-fry operation. Since opening its doors in 2003, Atosa has provided high-quality commercial kitchen equipment to household brands, including Wendy’s, DoorDash and Crumble Cookies.

Our banking team helped Atosa with their expansion to the U.S. “Setting up roots in a new country is inherently challenging,” said Michael Shao, Atosa President, who came from China to establish Atosa USA in 2013. “In the midst of uncertainties, East West Bank provided a familiar and reliable presence. As a recognized name, they became a bridge between the East and West, helping us navigate the cultural nuances and complexities of operating in the U.S. market.”

Read more about Atosa: https://issuu.com/eastwestbankar/docs/ewb_art_2023_annual_report_031924_issuu/18

Congrats to our brand and culture ambassador Rose Zhang on winning the Cognizant Founders Cup! 🌹 🏆 Rose made history nearly a year ago when she won the Mizuho Americas Open—also in New Jersey—her inaugural LPGA tournament.

📷: Rose poses with the trophy after winning the Cognizant Founders Cup at Upper Montclair Country Club on May 12, 2024, in Clifton, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Continuing East West Bank’s legacy of uniting together to build stronger communities, our associates showed up strong for the 16th annual 5k with . Every step we take, every dollar we raise, brings hope and change. .

During Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we celebrate the myriad ethnic groups, languages, religions and diverse backgrounds that make up “AAPI.” As the first federally chartered savings institution focused on the Chinese American community, East West Bank opened in 1973 to provide high-quality products and services with fair terms to help immigrants find solid financial footing in the U.S. Since then, our commitment to helping the underserved has grown even stronger. Together with our partners, we are building resilient communities that give people the confidence to reach further.

Awakened beauty. Shout-out to our client Laura Kim ()—Co-Creative Director of , Co-Founder of , and a light of the fashion world—at last night’s MET Gala ()! Laura donned a custom woven sinew dress with sculptural trellis, replete with golden flowers. She is pictured with Fernando Garcia (), Co-Creative Director of Oscar de la Renta and Co-Founder of Monse; and Pamela Anderson, adrip in diamonds and a dress also designed by Oscar de la Renta. Other notable designs include ’s “Shattered Glass,” ’s dramatic white monochrome ensemble, ’s florally detailed purple velvet dress, and ’s pearl-colored gown.



📷:
1. (from left) Fernando Garcia, Laura Kim and Pamela Anderson attend the 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art () on May 06, 2024, in New York City (photo by Theo Wargo/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)
2. Lauren Sanchez (photo by Gotham/Getty Images)
3. Kris Jenner (photo by Taylor Hill/Getty Images)
4. Kerry Washington (photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
5. Kylie Jenner (photo by Kevin Mazur/MG24/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)

Our heartfelt congratulations to Michelle Yeoh on receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor! The first Asian to win the Academy Award for Best Actress, Michelle has shattered stereotypes and ceilings throughout her career. With her work to advance gender equality and anti-poverty initiatives, she continues to inspire us to reach further on the big screen and beyond.

Teeing off with the pros! The East West Bank Foundation recently partnered with to hold their Golf Futures Clinic and Minicamp at Chester Washington Golf Course in Los Angeles. Aided by East West Bank volunteers, First Tee coaches and three professional golfers from the LPGA and PGA (Ben Lein, .1007; Alexa Melton, ; and Aaron Grimes, ) gave lessons to 30 kids and teens from local area schools to deepen their understanding of life skills, while improving their golf game.

Financial knowledge builds economic power. For more than 50 years, East West Bank has forged partnerships with nonprofit organizations teaching financial literacy, supporting adults in overcoming poverty, and providing aspiring entrepreneurs with the necessary skills to secure economic stability. Read how EWB partners like Financial Beginnings USA, Junior Achievement, and Kaimore embody our commitment to strengthen our communities and pave the way for upward mobility for Americans: https://www.eastwestbank.com/ReachFurther/en/News/Article/Empowering-Communities-Financial-Literacy-Initiatives

Empowering Communities: Financial Literacy Initiatives Discover how East West Bank partners with nonprofits to empower underserved communities through financial literacy and entrepreneurship programs.

Living the collaged life. Legendary restaurateur, artist and designer Michael Chow (aka “M”) has spent his career promoting Chinese culture, from his rock star restaurants that drew Hollywood elites—Paul Newman, Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat to name a few—to his personal journey as an expressionist artist. M spoke to our Chairman and CEO Dominic Ng about transforming through tragedy, his upcoming documentary and an exciting new business venture. Read more at Reach Further.

https://www.eastwestbank.com/ReachFurther/en/News/Article/Dominic-Ng-Speaks-with-Restaurateur-Artist-Michael-Chow

Planting seeds for a better tomorrow. This Earth Month, our SoCal associates partnered with Food ED () to cultivate a community garden at Temple City High School. Food ED collaborates with San Gabriel Valley communities and schools to teach about environmental stewardship, eco-justice, and healthy living practices through gardening.

Equipped with gardening gloves, our volunteers spent their Saturday morning pulling weeds, sifting compost, spreading mulch, and planting native plants and trees. Located near the building for visually impaired students, the garden will be integrated into their curriculum to gain insights into food sustainability while also providing a unique learning environment where they can engage with various plants through scent exploration.