Note 1 - Business

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2016

Notes to Financial Statements

Nature of Operations [Text Block]

1. Business

Cathay General Bancorp (“Bancorp”) is the holding company for Cathay Bank (the “Bank” and, together, the “Company”), six limited partnerships investing in affordable housing investments in which the Bank is the sole limited partner, GBC Venture Capital, Inc., and Asia Realty Corp. Bancorp also owns 100% of the common stock of five statutory business trusts created for the purpose of issuing capital securities. The Bank was founded in 1962 and offers a wide range of financial services. As of June 30, 2016, the Bank operated 22 branches in Southern California, 12 branches in Northern California, 12 branches in New York State, three branches in Illinois, three branches in Washington State, two branches in Texas, one branch in Massachusetts, one branch in New Jersey, one branch in Maryland, one branch in Nevada, one branch in Hong Kong, and a representative office in Shanghai and in Taipei. Deposit accounts at the Hong Kong branch are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”).