Exhibit 99.1


           NARA BANCORP AND NARA BANK ANNOUNCE CHANGE IN PRESIDENT &
                        CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER POSITION

LOS ANGELES, CA, DECEMBER 2, 2003: NARA BANCORP, INC. (Nasdaq: NARA) and its
subsidiary Nara Bank, N.A. (the "Bank"), today announced that Mr. Seong-Hoon
Hong, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nara Bancorp and Nara Bank has
resigned from his positions with Nara Bancorp and Nara Bank. His resignation is
effective immediately. Mr. Seong-Hoon Hong joined Nara Bank in September 2003
following the merger of Asiana Bank into Nara Bank. Former President and CEO and
current Chairman of Nara Bank, Benjamin Hong, has agreed to return from his
retirement to act as interim President and CEO of Nara Bancorp and Nara Bank
until his successor is appointed. Mr. Chong Moon Lee, current Chairman of Nara
Bancorp, will assume the position of interim Chairman of Nara Bank.

Mr. Chong Moon Lee, Chairman of the Board of Nara Bancorp, said, "I regret that
Mr. Seong-Hoon Hong is leaving us so early. However, I am pleased that Mr.
Benjamin Hong is returning to ensure continuity and maintain the Bank's current
growth plans. Mr. Benjamin Hong has offered, and the Board of Directors has
accepted, that he will assume the interim position with an annual salary of $1.
The Board of Directors appreciates his unselfish dedication to the Bank and its
stakeholders." Benjamin Hong will continue to serve as director of Nara Bancorp
and Nara Bank.

Dr. Thomas Chung, Chairman Emeritus of Nara Bancorp, said, "I had enjoyed
working with Mr. Benjamin Hong for many years. Under his leadership, the Bank
has experienced unprecedented growth. I am pleased that he is coming back to
ensure continuity in our growth strategy. The Board of Directors has full
confidence in his ability to continue the Bank's exceptional performance until
his successor is chosen."

About Nara Bancorp

Nara Bancorp, Inc. is the parent company of Nara Bank, N.A., which was founded
in 1989. Nara Bank is a full service commercial bank headquartered in Los
Angeles with twenty-two branches and offices in the United States and one
representative office in Seoul, Korea. Nara Bank operates full service branches
in California and New York with loan production offices in California,
Washington, Illinois, Georgia, New Jersey and Virginia. Nara Bank specializes in
core business banking products for small and medium-sized companies with
emphasis in commercial real estate and business lending, SBA lending and
international trade financing. Nara Bank is a member of the FDIC and is an Equal
Opportunity Lender. For more information on Nara Bank call our Los Angeles
office at 213-639-1700 or New York office at 212-279-2790 or visit our website
at www.narabank.com. Nara Bancorp, Inc. stock is listed on Nasdaq under the
symbol "NARA".

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements, including,
but not limited to economic, competitive, governmental and technological factors
affecting Nara Bancorp's operations, markets, products, services, and pricing.
Nara Bancorp undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release the results
of any revision to these forward-looking statements. Readers should carefully
review the risk factors and the information that could materially


affect Nara Bancorp's financial results, described in other documents the
Company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2003 and Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2002, and
particularly the discussion of business considerations and certain factors that
may affect results of operations and stock price set forth therein. Readers are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which
speak only as of the date of this press release.


CONTACT INFORMATION:
Benjamin Hong, Chief Executive Officer
213-639--1700
Timothy T. Chang, Chief Financial Officer
213-637-2596
timchang@narabank.com
J. Han Park, Public Relations
213-427-6322
hpark@narabank.com



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