EXHIBIT 99.1

HANMI FINANCIAL CORP. ANNOUNCES THE $1 BILLION IN LOAN MILESTONE AND THE SUCCESS
OF NEW BRANCH NETWORKS IN A VERY SHORT TIME

LOS ANGELES, Apr 1, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Hanmi Bank, a wholly owned
subsidiary of Hanmi Financial Corporation (Nasdaq: HAFC), recently surpassed $1
billion in total loans. Also, its two newly opened branches are achieving
exceptional growth in total deposits in the very short time they have been
operational. Torrance Branch in Los Angeles County, opened in October 2002, has
obtained $15 million in deposits in less than five months. Silicon Valley
Branch, in Northern California, that just began business in February 2003, now
has over $13 million in deposits in less than two months after opening its
doors.

"These remarkable achievements by the two branches exceeded our expectations,
representing an immediate tangible return on our effective planned growth
strategy. At the same time, due to growing loan demand in the local market and
increasing funds flowing from our increasing number of strong branch networks,
our loan portfolio was able to reach the $1 billion milestone," said Chung Hoon
Youk, President and CEO at Hanmi Bank.

About Hanmi Financial Corporation

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Hanmi Bank, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hanmi
Financial Corporation, is one of the leading banks providing services to the
multi-ethnic communities of California, with 14 full-service offices in Los
Angeles, Orange, San Diego, and Santa Clara counties. Hanmi Bank specializes in
commercial, SBA, trade finance and consumer lending, and is a recognized
community leader. The Bank's mission is to provide varied quality products and
premier services to its customers and to maximize shareholder value.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain forward-looking statements, which are included in
accordance with the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking
statements by terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "could," "expects,"
"plans," "intends," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts,"
"potential," or "continue," or the negative of such terms and other comparable
terminology. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the
forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results,
levels of activity, performance or achievements. These statements involve known
and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual
results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ from those
expressed or implied by the forward-looking statement. These factors include the
following: general economic and business conditions in those areas in which the
Company operates; demographic changes; competition for loans and deposits;
fluctuation in interest rates; risks of natural disasters related to the
Company's real estate portfolio; risks associated with SBA loans; changes in
governmental regulation; credit quality; the availability of capital to fund the
expansion of the Company's business; and changes in securities markets.

Hanmi Financial Corporation
Yong Ku Choe, CFO, 213/368-3200
Kate Yi, Investor Relations, 213/639-1767