UNITED STATES


SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION


WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549


_______________________________


FORM 10-K/A


Amendment No. 1


_______________________________


ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OFTHE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934





For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017





Commission File Number 000-50245


________________________________________


HOPE BANCORP, INC.


(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


_________________________________________


Delaware95-4849715(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)3200 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1400,Los Angeles, California90010(Address of principal executive offices)(Zip Code)





(213) 639-1700


(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)





Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:


Title of className of Exchange on which registeredCommon Stock, par value $0.001 per shareNASDAQ Global Select Market





Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None


_________________________________________________





Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.


Yes x No o


Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.    Yes o No x


Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes x No o


Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).      Yes x No o


Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K x


Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.


Large accelerated filerxAccelerated fileroNon-accelerated filero(Do not check if a smaller reporting company)Smaller reporting companyoEmerging growth companyo


If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o


Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).    Yes o No x


The aggregate market value of the Common Stock held by non-affiliates of the Registrant based upon the closing sale price of the Common Stock as of the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, June 30, 2017, as reported on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, was approximately $2,408,992,339.


Number of shares outstanding of the Registrant’s Common Stock as of March 31, 2018: 135,516,009







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Explanatory Note





This Amendment No. 1 on Form 10-K/A (this “Amendment”) amends the Annual report on Form 10-K of Hope Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company,” “HOPE,” “we,” “us” or “our”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 originally filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 1, 2018 (the “Original Annual Report”) and is being filed solely to amend Crowe Horwath LLP’s Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm to include Crowe Horwath LLP’s signature, which was inadvertently omitted from the Original Annual Report.





Except as specifically set forth in this Amendment, no attempt has been made to modify or update other disclosures presented in the Original Annual Report. The disclosures in this Amendment continue to speak as of the date of the Original Annual Report, and do not reflect any events that occurred at a date subsequent to the filing of the Original Annual Report.  The filing of this Amendment is not, and shall not be deemed to be a representation that any statements contained in items of the Original Annual Report are true or complete as of any date subsequent to the date of the Original Annual Report.







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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm








Shareholders and the Board of Directors of Hope Bancorp, Inc.


Los Angeles, California





Opinions on the Financial Statements and Internal Control over Financial Reporting


We have audited the accompanying consolidated statement of financial condition of Hope Bancorp, Inc. (the "Company") as of December 31, 2017, the related consolidated statements of income, comprehensive income, changes in stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the year then ended, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the "financial statements"). We also have audited the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2017, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework: (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).





In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2017, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Also in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2017, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework: (2013) issued by COSO.





Basis for Opinions


The Company’s management is responsible for these financial statements, for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in the accompanying Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting.  Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements and an opinion on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audits.  We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) ("PCAOB") and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.





We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud, and whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.





Our audit of the financial statements included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audit also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinions.





Definition and Limitations of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting


A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.  A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.








Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements.  Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.








/s/  Crowe Horwath LLP


Crowe Horwath LLP





We have served as the Company's auditor since 2017.


Los Angeles, California


March 1, 2018







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PART IV





|         |                                           
|-------- | ------------------------------------------
|Item 15. | EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES




List of Exhibits


NumberDescription31.1Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to section 302 of Sarbanes-Oxley of 200231.2Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to section 302 of Sarbanes-Oxley of 2002







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SIGNATURES


Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) 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: April 9, 2018


HOPE BANCORP, INC.By:/s/    Kevin S. KimKevin S. KimPresident and Chief Executive Officer





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