LOS ANGELES, Aug. 12, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Wilshire Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq:WIBC), the holding company for Wilshire State Bank, today announced that Joanne Kim, President and CEO, and Alex Ko, SVP and CFO, are scheduled to present at the Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett 13th Annual Community Bank Conference at the Ritz Carlton in Chicago. Wilshire's presentation is scheduled for Wednesday, August 20, 2008, at 8:50 a.m. PDT (10:50 a.m. CDT). The live and archived presentation can be viewed at www.wilshirebank.com and www.howebarnes.com.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Wilshire State Bank operates 21 branch offices in California, Texas, New Jersey and New York, and seven loan production offices in Seattle, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Denver, Annandale, VA, and Palisades Park, NJ and is an SBA preferred lender nationwide. Wilshire State Bank is a community bank with a focus on commercial real estate lending and general commercial banking, with its primary market encompassing the multi-ethnic populations of the Los Angeles Metropolitan area. Wilshire Bancorp's strategic goals include increasing shareholder and franchise value by continuing to grow its multi-ethnic banking business and expanding its geographic reach to other similar markets with strong levels of small business activity.

www.wilshirebank.com

CONTACT: Wilshire Bancorp, Inc.
         Joanne Kim, President & CEO
           213-639-1843
         Alex Ko, SVP & CFO
           213-427-6560
         www.wilshirebank.com