First Foundation Bank Announces Conversion of Bank Charter

First Foundation Bank (“FFB”), announced today that effective June 28, 2012, it has changed its banking charter from a national thrift charter to a California state charter. As a result, FFB’s primary regulators will be the State of California Department of Financial Institutions (the “DFI”) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”) instead of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”).

Scott F. Kavanaugh, CEO of FFB, stated, “We are extremely pleased to be able to work with the DFI and the FDIC as our primary regulators. We believe that they have a strong understanding of our local markets and have extensive experience in regulating community banks of our size.”

“We have submitted our merger application related to our acquisition of Desert Commercial Bank to both the DFI and FDIC,” added Mr. Kavanaugh. Completion of the merger is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals.

About First Foundation

First Foundation is a financial institution with over twenty years of experience that provides integrated investment management, wealth planning, consulting, trust and banking services. The company is headquartered in Irvine with offices in Irvine, La Quinta, Pasadena and San Diego, California. First Foundation Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of First Foundation Inc. For more information, please visit our website at www.ff-inc.com.

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