Exhibit 99

News Release

First Regional	1801 Century Park East	Jack A. Sweeney
Bancorp	Century City, California 90067	Board Chairman
	Telephone (310) 552-1776	Chief Executive Officer
	Facsimile (310) 552-1772

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FIRST REGIONAL BANCORP ANNOUNCES FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE SECOND QUARTER AND FIRST HALF OF 2007

Financial Highlights include the following:

· Company continues strong profitability

· Total assets, deposits and loans increase to new record highs

· First half revenues from earning assets post 10% increase to $83.7 million

· Total capital grows 32% to $165.9 million

· Credit quality remains exceptionally strong

CENTURY CITY, CALIF. (July 18, 2007) – First Regional Bancorp (NasdaqGM: FRGB) today reported strong net income for the second quarter ended June 30, 2007. Total assets, deposits and net loans all posted increases over the prior year, although net income for the first six months of 2007 was approximately 2.4% below last year’s record first half.

Net income for the second quarter of 2007 was $8.6 million, equal to 66 cents per diluted share, compared with $9.6 million or 74 cents per diluted share in the corresponding quarter of 2006. For the six months ended June 30, 2007, net income totaled $17.6 million, equal to $1.35 per diluted share, compared with $18.1 million or $1.39 per diluted share in the same months last year. Results for all periods have been adjusted to reflect the 3-for-1 stock split effected in August 2006. Revenues from earning assets for the first half of 2007 totaled $83.7 million, up 10% from $76.4 million in the first half of 2006.

At June 30, 2007, total assets amounted to $2.058 billion, approximately 3% higher than $1.999 billion a year earlier. Total deposits grew 7% to $1.640 billion from $1.537 billion on the same date in 2006. Net loans were $1.885 billion, a 7% increase from $1.761 billion in the prior year.

Jack A. Sweeney, chairman and CEO, commented: “First Regional continues to achieve solid profitability despite a challenging environment. Our results represent another strong and profitable quarter, although they reflect a modest decline from the record profits of last year’s corresponding quarter. Throughout the industry, financial institutions are presently beset by slower growth, higher expenses and shrinking net interest margins. While we continue to outperform others in the industry, we are not immune from these pressures.

Mr. Sweeney continued: “Our management philosophy remains fundamentally conservative and risk-averse. We have always placed primary emphasis on financial strength and the maintenance of high credit quality. For example, we have taken care to avoid such risky areas of the real estate market as subprime

lending. In the present environment, these attributes serve us well and represent the basis of our optimism regarding First Regional’s future.”

To keep pace with loan growth, First Regional added $300,000 to its loan loss reserve in the second quarter of 2007. This brought the balance of the reserve to $21.1 million at June 30, 2007, compared with nonperforming assets of just $13,000 as of the same date. With respect to financial strength, total capital at the close of the second quarter amounted to $165.9 million, up 32% from $125.5 million at June 30, 2006.

Mr. Sweeney concluded: “For the past several years, our bank has achieved an exceptional record of sound, profitable growth, and despite current challenges, we remain confident of First Regional’s positioning and prospects for long-term success. Our talented management and staff have a wealth of experience and has demonstrated the ability to manage successfully in good times and bad. We remain constantly vigilant and, should conditions warrant, are prepared to take swift, decisive action to meet any challenges that may arise as well as to capitalize on opportunities that present themselves.

“As always, we remain dedicated to building long-term shareholder value, maintaining financial strength and high credit quality, and providing our customers with excellence in service.”

First Regional Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Century City. Its subsidiary, First Regional Bank, specializes in providing businesses and professionals with the management expertise of a major bank and the personalized service of an independent.

# # #

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CONDITION (UNAUDITED)

	(000’s omitted)
As of June 30	2007			2006

ASSETS:
Cash and due from banks	$	76,508		$	167,224
Federal funds sold	0			0
Cash and cash equivalents	76,508			167,224

Investment securities	31,685			17,646
Federal Home Loan Bank stock - at cost	9,326			12,581
Loans - net	1,885,288			1,760,931
Premises and equipment - net	5,012			3,821
Other real estate owned	0			0
Accrued interest receivable and other assets	50,479			37,741

Total assets	$	2,058,298		$	1,999,944

LIABILITIES AND CAPITAL:
Demand deposits	$	416,961		$	482,458
Savings deposits	58,049			50,160
Money market deposits	938,029			816,585
Time deposits	226,701			188,170

Total deposits	1,639,740			1,537,373

Funds purchased	0			0
Federal Home Loan Bank advances	140,000			230,000
Subordinated debentures	92,785			92,785
Accrued interest payable and other liabilities	19,923			14,317

Total liabilities	1,892,448			1,874,475

Stated capital	53,597			50,974
Retained earnings	112,502			74,611
Net unrealized gains (losses) on available-for-sale securities	(249		)	(116		)

Total capital	165,850			125,469

Total liabilities and capital	$	2,058,298		$	1,999,944

Book value per share outstanding	$	13.54		$	10.31

Total shares outstanding	12,250,728			12,166,170

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (UNAUDITED)

	(000’s omitted)				(000’s omitted)
	Three Months Ended				Six Months Ended
	June 30				June 30
	2007		2006		2007		2006

Interest on loans	$	41,814	$	39,669	$	82,752	$	76,176
Interest on federal funds sold	121		43		212		75
Interest on investment securities	422		129		718		197

Total interest income	42,357		39,841		83,682		76,448

Interest on deposits	12,355		8,839		23,878		16,212
Interest on subordinated debentures	1,716		1,641		3,399		2,684
Interest on FHLB advances	1,599		2,459		3,194		4,895
Interest on other borrowings	3		1		9		4

Total interest expense	15,673		12,940		30,480		23,795

Net interest income	26,684		26,901		53,202		52,653

Provision for loan losses	300		1,500		300		3,891

Net interest income after provision for loan losses	26,384		25,401		52,902		48,762

Other operating income	2,048		2,498		4,415		4,450

Salaries and related benefits	8,627		6,983		17,648		13,779
Occupancy expenses	962		682		1,781		1,304
Other expenses	3,830		3,389		7,309		6,372

Total other operating expenses	13,419		11,054		26,738		21,455

Income before provision for income taxes	15,013		16,845		30,579		31,757

Provision for income taxes	6,369		7,252		12,944		13,680

Net income	$	8,644	$	9,593	$	17,635	$	18,077

	(000’s omitted)					(000’s omitted)
	Three Months Ended					Six Months Ended
	June 30					June 30
	2007		2006			2007		2006

Net income per share
Basic	$	0.71	$	0.79		$	1.44	$	1.49
Diluted	$	0.66	$	0.74		$	1.35	$	1.39

Average shares outstanding	12,242,692		12,156,933			12,228,402		12,141,054
Diluted average shares	13,063,210		12,993,282			13,073,395		12,967,884

Average equity	$	161,537	$	119,992		$	156,725	$	115,267
Average assets	$	2,016,344	$	1,926,284		$	1,996,948	$	1,897,332
Return on average equity (%)	21.46		32.07			22.69		31.63
Return on average assets (%)	1.72		2.00			1.78		1.92
Efficiency ratio (%)	46.70		37.60			46.41		37.57
Number of employees	279		243
Assets per employee (000s)	$	7,377	$	8,230

CREDIT QUALITY

Beginning reserve for loan losses (000s)	$	20,694	$	18,975		$	20,624	$	17,577
Loan loss provisions	300		1,500			300		3,891
Loan recoveries	15		0			94		0
Loan chargeoffs	50		0			50		941
Net change in allowance for unfunded loan commitments	164		(162		)	155		(214		)
Ending reserve for loan losses (000s)	$	21,123	$	20,313		$	21,123	$	20,313

Nonperforming assets (000s)	$	13	$	62
Nonperforming assets / gross loans (%)	0.00		0.00
Reserve for loan losses / nonperforming assets (%)	162484.62		32762.90
Reserve for loan losses / gross loans (%)	1.11		1.14

	(000s omitted)
	For the Three Months Ended June 30,
	2007					2006
	Average				Average	Average				Average
	Balance		Interest		Yield/Cost (%)	Balance		Interest		Yield/Cost (%)

Gross loans	$	1,868,461	$	41,814	8.98	$	1,806,214	$	39,669	8.81
Funds sold	7,285		121		6.66	3,620		43		4.76
Investment securities	30,913		422		5.48	13,762		129		3.76
Total earning assets	$	1,906,659	$	42,357	8.91	$	1,823,596	$	39,841	8.76

Deposits	$	1,629,011	$	12,355	3.04	$	1,507,316	$	8,839	2.35
Federal Home Loan Bank advances	121,575		1,599		5.28	197,341		2,459		5.00
Subordinated debentures	92,785		1,716		7.42	92,785		1,641		7.09
Funds purchased	145		3		8.30	99		1		4.05
Total bearing liabilities	$	1,843,516	$	15,673	3.41	$	1,797,541	$	12,940	2.89

Net interest spread (1)					5.50					5.88

Net interest margin (2)					5.61					5.85

(1) Net interest spread represents the average yield earned on earning assets less the average cost of bearing liabilities.

(2) Net interest margin represents net interest income divided by average earning assets.

	(000s omitted)
	For the Six Months Ended June 30,
	2007					2006
	Average				Average	Average				Average
	Balance		Interest		Yield/Cost (%)	Balance		Interest		Yield/Cost (%)

Gross Loans	$	1,849,854	$	82,752	9.02	$	1,780,873	$	76,176	8.63
Funds Sold	7,025		212		6.09	3,483		75		4.34
Investment Securities	29,739		718		4.87	11,367		197		3.49
Total Earning Assets	$	1,886,618	$	83,682	8.94	$	1,795,723	$	76,448	8.59

Deposits	$	1,613,775	$	23,878	2.98	$	1,486,307	$	16,212	2.20
Federal Home Loan Bank Advances	120,085		3,194		5.36	207,746		4,895		4.75
Subordinated Debentures	92,785		3,399		7.39	77,577		2,684		6.98
Other Borrowings	283		9		6.41	90		4		8.96
Total Bearing Liabilities	$	1,826,928	$	30,480	3.36	$	1,771,720	$	23,795	2.71

Net Interest Spread (1)					5.58					5.88

Net Interest Margin (2)					5.69					5.91

(1) Net interest spread represents the average yield earned on earning assets less the average cost of bearing liabilities.

(2) Net interest margin represents net interest income divided by average earning assets.

The following is a schedule of new loans booked (not including loan renewals) by First Regional’s subsidiary, First Regional Bank, during each month of the second quarter of 2007:

Month	New Loans Booked
	(000’s omitted)

April	$	62,094
May	123,274
June	183,665
Total For Second Quarter	$	369,033

The following schedule describes the primary components of First Regional Bank’s loan portfolio as of June 30, 2007 and 2006:

	Disbursed Balance as of		Percentage		Disbursed Balance as of		Percentage
	June 30, 2007		of Total		June 30, 2006		of Total
	(000’s omitted)				(000’s omitted)
Commercial Real Estate Loans
Construction Loans	$	511,641	26.7	%	$	300,545	16.8	%
Mini-Perm Loans	268,728		14.0	%	266,735		14.9	%
Bridge Loans	869,329		45.4	%	1,018,430		56.9	%
Other	31,808		1.7	%	24,370		1.4	%
	1,681,506		87.8	%	1,610,080		90.0	%
Commercial Non-Real Estate
Secured Loans	$	233,754	12.2	%	$	179,354	10.0	%
					$
Total loans	$	1,915,260	100.0	%	1,789,434		100.0	%
Less - Allowance for loan losses	21,123				20,313
- Deferred loan fees	8,849				8,190
Net Loans	1,885,288				1,760,931

This report includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein may constitute forward-looking statements. Although First Regional believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from First Regional’s expectations include fluctuations in interest rates, inflation, government regulations, and economic conditions and competition in the geographic and business areas in which First Regional conducts its operations.