Nara Bancorp Chairman Dr. Chong-Moon Lee Transitions to Chairman Emeritus

Nara Bancorp, Inc. (the "Company”) (NASDAQ:NARA), the holding company of Nara Bank (the "Bank”), announced today that Dr. Chong-Moon Lee, Chairman of the Board of the Company and a member of the board of the Bank, has decided that he will not stand for re-election and will relinquish his board seat upon the completion of his current term of service in May 2008. Dr. Lee, 80, has served as Chairman of Nara Bancorp, Inc. since September 2003 and Chairman of Nara Bank, from September 2003 to August 2006. Dr. Lee stated, "I believe this is a good time for me to step down from my board responsibilities because of the confidence that I have in management and my fellow board members. We have a stable management team and well-respected and experienced board members who are providing excellent stewardship. It was always my goal to strengthen the management and board leadership, and then step down to pursue my passion for education and the arts, including humanitarian philanthropic activities.” Dr. Lee has served as a Consulting Professor at the Asian Pacific Research Center of Stanford University for five years. He currently serves as advisor to Entrepreneurship Education at the Engineering School of Stanford University and he is a Chaired Professor emeritus of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). Dr. Lee serves as a Commissioner & Trustee of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco – Chong-Moon Lee Center for Asian Art & Culture, the largest Asian arts museum outside of Asia. He also serves as a Trustee of the Asia Foundation, San Francisco, as a Trustee of the Asia Society, New York, and as an advisor to the Center for Security and International Studies (CSIS), in Washington DC, one of the largest think tanks in America. He is also a member of the California Arts Council. "Dr. Lee’s leadership, not only for our Company but for the community at-large, is well known. His philanthropic endeavors in cultural and educational areas reflect his generosity and concern for the well-being of others. We will miss his leadership and guidance,” said Min Kim, CEO of Nara Bancorp, Inc. The Company anticipates that the Board of Directors will elect a new Chairman at organizational meetings to be held in late May 2008. Upon the completion of his service to the Boards of Directors of Company and Bank, Dr. Chong-Moon Lee will serve as the Chairman Emeritus of Nara Bancorp, Inc. About Nara Bancorp, Inc. Nara Bancorp, Inc. is the parent company of Nara Bank, which was founded in 1989. Nara Bank is a full-service community bank headquartered in Los Angeles, with 20 branches and 8 loan production offices in the United States. Nara Bank operates full-service branches in California, New York and New Jersey, with loan production offices in California, Washington, Nevada, Texas, Georgia, Nevada, New Jersey, and Virginia. Nara Bank was founded specifically to serve the needs of Korean Americans, one of the fastest-growing Asian ethnic communities over the past decade. Presently, Nara Bank serves a diverse group of customers mirroring its communities. 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, 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 contains forward-looking statements, including statements about future operations and management, 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. Readers should carefully review the risk factors and the information that could materially affect Nara Bancorp's financial results and business described in documents the Company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Reports on Form 10-K, and particularly the discussion of business considerations and risk 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. Nara Bancorp undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements.