8-K

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                UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

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                                    FORM 8-K

                                 CURRENT REPORT

     Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934


          Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): May 8, 2007


                             CATHAY GENERAL BANCORP
             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


           Delaware                         0-18630                 95-4274680
(State or other jurisdiction of    (Commission File Number)       (IRS Employer
        incorporation) No.)                                      Identification

                777 North Broadway, Los Angeles, California 90012
               (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

       Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (213) 625-4700

                                 Not Applicable

          (Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

      Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to
simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the
following provisions:

|_|   Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17
      CFR 230.425)

|_|   Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
      240.14a-12)

|_|   Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the
      Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

|_|   Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the
      Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))





Item 8.01         Other Events

On May 8, 2007, Cathay General Bancorp announced that it had completed its
current stock repurchase program and that its Board of Directors has approved a
new program to repurchase up to an aggregate of one million additional shares of
Cathay General Bancorp common stock. Information about this new repurchase
program is set forth in a press release dated May 8, 2007. That press release is
attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1.

Item 9.01         Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d)      Exhibits

         99.1     Press Release of Cathay General Bancorp dated May 8, 2007.




                                    SIGNATURE


      Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

Date:  May 8, 2007
                                    CATHAY GENERAL BANCORP



                                    By:  /s/ Heng W. Chen
                                        ----------------------------------------
                                        Heng W. Chen
                                        Executive Vice President and Chief
                                        Financial Officer






                                  EXHIBIT INDEX



Number          Exhibit

99.1            Press Release of Cathay General Bancorp dated May 8, 2007.

EX-99.1

             General Bancorp Authorizes Additional Stock Repurchase

      LOS ANGELES, May 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cathay General Bancorp
("Cathay", Nasdaq: CATY), the holding company for Cathay Bank, announced today
that it has completed the one-million share stock repurchase program announced
on March 6, 2007, and that its Board of Directors has approved a new program to
repurchase up to an additional one million shares of Cathay common stock.

      In March 2007, the Board of Directors of Cathay approved a stock
repurchase program to buy back up to an aggregate of one million shares of
Cathay's common stock. On May 8, 2007, Cathay completed this March 2007
repurchase program under which it repurchased one million shares of Cathay
common stock for $33.8 million, or an average price of $33.79 per share.

      "As with our prior stock repurchase programs, this authorization again
reflects Cathay's commitment to effective capital management and long-term
stockholder value," commented Dunson K. Cheng, Chairman of the Board, President,
and Chief Executive Officer of Cathay.

      Any repurchases will be made from time to time on the open market at
prevailing market prices or in privately negotiated transactions. Shares
repurchased are expected to be used for employee stock options and other
business purposes. Cathay had 51,177,824 shares of common stock outstanding at
April 30, 2007.

      ABOUT CATHAY GENERAL BANCORP

      Cathay General Bancorp is the holding company for Cathay Bank, a
California state-chartered bank. Founded in 1962, Cathay Bank offers a wide
range of financial services. Cathay Bank currently operates 30 branches in
California, nine branches in New York State, one in Massachusetts, one in
Houston, Texas, three in Washington State, three in Chicago, Illinois, one in
New Jersey, a loan production office in Dallas, and representative offices in
Taipei, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Cathay Bank's website is found at
http://www.cathaybank.com/.

      FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND OTHER NOTICES

      Statements made in this press release, other than statements of historical
fact, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the applicable
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding
management's beliefs, projections, and assumptions concerning future results and
events. These forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to,
such words as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans,"
"estimates," "may," "will," "should," "could," "predicts," "potential,"
"continue," or the negative of such terms and other comparable terminology or
similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees. They involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the
actual results, performance, or achievements of Cathay General Bancorp to be
materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and
uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to, adverse
developments or conditions related to or arising from: expansion into new market
areas; acquisitions of other banks, if any; fluctuations in interest rates;
demographic changes; earthquake or other natural disasters; competitive
pressures; deterioration in asset or credit quality; changes in the availability
of capital; legislative and regulatory developments; changes in business
strategy; and general economic or business conditions in California and other
regions where Cathay Bank has operations.

      These and other factors are further described in Cathay General Bancorp's
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006, its reports and
registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
("SEC") and other filings it makes in the future with the SEC from time to time.
Cathay General Bancorp has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update
any forward-looking statements or to publicly announce the results of any
revision of any forward-looking statement to reflect future developments or
events. Cathay General Bancorp's filings with the SEC are available to the
public from commercial document retrieval services and at the website maintained
by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov, or by request directed to Cathay General
Bancorp, 777 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012, Attention: Investor Relations
(213) 625-4749.

SOURCE  Cathay General Bancorp
    -0-                             05/08/2007
    /CONTACT:  Heng W. Chen of Cathay General Bancorp, +1-213-625-4752 /
    /Web site:  http://www.cathaybank.com /
    (CATY)