First California Responds to PacWest Bancorp's Unsolicited Proposal

First California Financial Group, Inc.

, the holding company of First California Bank, today announced, in response to PacWest Bancorp's unsolicited and highly conditional offer to acquire First California Financial Group for shares of PacWest common stock, First California stated that its Board of Directors promptly reviewed the proposal and sought further clarifying information from PacWest concerning the terms and value of the proposal and related matters. However, PacWest failed to provide satisfactory answers to those questions and refused to enter into a nondisclosure agreement that did not contain an exclusivity provision. The First California Board did not believe that it was in the best interests of stockholders to grant exclusivity to PacWest in the absence of satisfactory clarification of the terms and value of its proposal and taking into account the other strategic alternatives that First California may pursue, including discussions with third parties.