Bank of Hope, the largest Korean-American commercial bank operating in the United States, was formed through a historic 2016 merger of equals between BBCN Bank and Wilshire Bank. Going further back into its complex corporate lineage, BBCN Bank itself was created from the 2011 combination of Nara Bank and Center Bank, while Wilshire Bank traced its origins back to its establishment in Los Angeles. Following the finalization of the strategic merger between BBCN and Wilshire, the combined banking network was officially rebranded as Bank of Hope to represent a unified cultural and commercial institution.