Women in Leadership: Los Angeles bank CEO on serving diverse communities

Today we bring you the latest installment in our ‘Women in Leadership’ series of the ESG Insider podcast, featuring interviews with women CEOs and leaders from around the world. 

In this episode, we talk with Bonnie Lee, President and CEO of Hanmi Financial Corporation and Hanmi Bank, a Los Angeles-based community bank established in 1982 to serve the Korean American immigrant community and now serving multi-ethnic communities through its network of branches and loan production offices. 

Bonnie tells us how her interest in banking began when she watched her parents apply for a small business loan, and how she has learned from the successes and mistakes of a dozen different CEOs she has worked under during her career. 

She says empathy plays an important role in her leadership style — because ultimately, "banking is really a people business."  

Bonnie also explains Hanmi's approach to diversity, and how the bank’s workforce mirrors the diversity of the markets where it operates. "Throughout the 42-year history, the culture and our platform has [been] built to represent the market that we serve," she says. 

Read the latest research on gender diversity in leadership from S&P Global Sustainable1 here: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/insights/featured/special-editorial/women-in-leadership-what-s-the-holdup   

Listen to our 2023 Women in Leadership podcast series here: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/insights/featured/special-editorial/women-in-leadership 

This piece was published by S&P Global Sustainable1, a part of S&P Global.       

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