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            Contact: Timothy M.
      Doyle
              Executive Managing Director, CFO
              858.551.0511






FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE








IMPERIAL CAPITAL BANCORP,
INC. REPORTS


RESULTS FOR THE QUARTER
ENDED


MARCH 31,
2009











La Jolla,
California (May 15, 2009) --- Imperial Capital Bancorp, Inc. (PNK-IMPC.PK) today
reported a net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2009, primarily resulting
from the operations of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Imperial Capital Bank (the
Bank), of $17.7 million or $3.27 per diluted share compared to net income of
$697,000 or $0.13 per diluted share for the same period last
year.  Executive Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer,
Timothy M. Doyle, stated that: “Our first quarter results reflect a continuation
of the challenges that we faced during the second half of
2008.  Credit markets and economic conditions were unstable and
problem assets within our real estate loan portfolio remained at elevated
levels.  As a result, we recorded a provision for loan losses of $19.2
million during the period.  This provision was the primary factor
driving our reported quarterly loss.  Despite these financial results,
we’re committed to reducing our risk profile and improving our regulatory
capital ratios through the implementation of four primary strategic initiatives,
which include improving our asset quality, reducing our asset base, controlling
our expenses and reducing our reliance on wholesale funding
sources.”





Net
interest income before provision for loan losses was $18.9 million and $20.1
million for the quarters ended March 31, 2009 and March 31, 2008,
respectively.  During the current period, interest earned on our loan
portfolio declined to $41.5 million, as compared to $54.8 million for the same
period last year.  This decrease was caused by a decline in loan
yields, as well as a decline in the average loans outstanding during the current
period.  The decline in loan yields was primarily impacted by
adjustable rate loans repricing to lower current market interest rates and an
increase in the average balance of non-performing loans.  The accrual
of interest has been suspended on all of our non-performing
loans.  The average balance of our loans was $2.8 billion and $3.1
billion for the quarters ended March 31, 2009 and 2008,
respectively.  During the quarter, interest earned on cash and
investment securities increased to $20.3 million compared to $4.2 million during
the same period last year.  This increase was primarily related to
interest earned on our investment securities held-to-maturity.  During
the quarters ended March 31, 2009 and 2008, the average balance of these
securities was $929.0 million and $159.2 million, respectively.  These
increases were primarily related to the purchase of approximately $861.8 million
of corporate sponsored collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) during the
second and third quarters of 2008.  At the time of acquisition, these
securities were AAA-rated.  As of March 31, 2009, approximately 92.4%
of these securities had been downgraded by the investment rating agencies to a
level below investment grade.  Despite these downgrades, we have
experienced no disruption in our expected cash flows on these
securities.  To a lesser extent, net interest income before provision
for loan losses was positively impacted by a $257.2 million increase in
securities available-for-sale.  As discussed below, this increase
primarily consisted of the acquisition of U.S. Treasury and Government National
Mortgage Association (GNMA) securities during the current period.





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2 of 5




Net
interest income before provision for loan losses was further impacted by an
increase in interest expenses incurred on our interest bearing
liabilities.  Interest expense on our deposits increased by $3.4
million due to a $1.0 billion increase in the average outstanding deposits
during the quarter ended March 31, 2009 as compared to the same period last
year, partially offset by an 87 basis point decline in our average cost of
funds, primarily caused by deposits repricing to lower current market interest
rates.





The
provision for loan losses was $19.2 million and $4.3 million, respectively, for
the quarters ended March 31, 2009 and 2008.  The provision for loan
losses recorded during the 2009 first quarter was primarily due to the increase
in our non-performing loans and other loans of concern.  Other loans
of concern consist of performing loans which have known information that has
caused management to be concerned about the borrower’s ability to comply with
present loan repayment terms.  Non-performing loans as of March 31,
2009 were $187.9 million, compared to $154.9 million at December 31,
2008.  The increase in non-performing loans was caused by increases of
$17.1 million in multi-family loans, $9.0 million in commercial real estate
loans and $10.8 million in commercial and multi-family construction loans,
partially offset by decreases of $2.6 million in residential and condominium
conversion construction loans and $783,000 in land development related
loans.  Other loans of concern as of March 31, 2009 were $263.4
million, compared to $114.6 million at December 31, 2008.  The
increase during the current period was primarily caused by the addition of $47.6
million of multi-family real estate loans, $45.2 million of commercial real
estate loans and $41.9 million of construction and land related
loans.





With the
housing and secondary mortgage markets continuing to deteriorate and showing no
signs of stabilizing in the near future, we continue to aggressively monitor our
real estate loan portfolio, including our construction and land loan
portfolio.  Our construction and land loan portfolio at March 31, 2009
totaled $377.2 million, of which $175.4 million were residential and condominium
conversion construction loans and $34.0 million were land development loans,
representing 6.4% and 1.2%, respectively, of our total loan
portfolio.  Within these portfolios, approximately 55.8%, 26.6%, 5.1%
and 5.1% of the underlying collateral was located in California, New York,
Florida and Arizona, respectively.  At March 31, 2009, we had $68.3
million and $13.5 million of non-performing lending relationships within our
residential and condominium conversion construction loans and land development
loans, respectively.  Of these non-performing construction and land
development loans, 12 relationships, with an aggregate balance of $62.7 million,
were located in California (primarily in Los Angeles, Orange County and the
Inland Empire).





Non-interest
income was $613,000 and $268,000 for the quarters ended March 31, 2009 and 2008,
respectively.  During the quarter, we recognized a $1.4 million gain
on a sale of investment securities available-for-sale, which was partially
offset by a $1.1 million fee incurred in connection with the early settlement of
our $30 million other borrowing.  Non-interest income typically
consists of fees and other miscellaneous income earned on customer
accounts.





General
and administrative expenses were $14.4 million for the quarter ended March 31,
2009, compared to $13.5 million for the same period last year.  The
increase was primarily caused by additional Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (the FDIC) deposit insurance premiums assessed during the current
quarter compared to the same period last year.  This increase was
partially offset by an $815,000 decline in compensation and benefits, which was
primarily related to a 23% workforce reduction incurred during the current
quarter.  Our efficiency ratio (defined as general and administrative
expenses as a percentage of net revenue) was 73.5% and 66.3% for the quarters
ended March 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively.  The variance in our
efficiency ratio was primarily caused by the $1.1 million decline in net
interest income and an $864,000 increase in general and administrative
expenses.





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Provision
for income taxes was $454,000 for the quarter ended March 31,
2008.  During the current period, the Company recognized a $4.5
million tax benefit in connection with the net loss incurred.  This
benefit was entirely offset by a valuation allowance established due to
uncertainty related to our ability to realize the Company’s remaining deferred
tax assets.  Management will continue to evaluate the potential
realizability of these deferred tax assets and will establish an additional
valuation allowance to the extent it is determined that it is more likely than
not that these assets will not be realized.





Loan
originations were $6.4 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2009, compared to
$88.5 million for the same period last year.  During the current
quarter, the Bank originated $6.4 million of small balance multi-family real
estate loans.  Loan originations for the same period last year
consisted of $43.8 million of commercial real estate loans, $19.0 million of
small balance multi-family real estate loans, and $25.7 million of entertainment
finance loans.  The decrease in loan production during the current
period related to a decline in customer demand, as well as the Bank’s strategic
objective to reduce our asset base and the concentration of our real estate loan
portfolio.





Total
assets increased $80.3 million to $4.5 billion at March 31, 2009, compared to
$4.4 billion at December 31, 2008.  The increase in total assets was
primarily due to an increase in our liquidity caused by a $178.1 million
increase in retail deposit accounts.  We utilized this increased
liquidity to reduce FHLB advances and other borrowings, as part of our strategy
to retire wholesale funding at their maturities, and to acquire U.S. Treasury
and GNMA securities.  FHLB advances and other borrowings declined by
$80.8 million during the current period and investment securities
available-for-sale increased by $257.2 million.  The increase in total
assets was partially offset by a $77.7 million decrease in cash and cash
equivalents, a $68.1 million decline in our loan portfolio and a $37.1 million
decrease in our investment securities held-to-maturity.  Additionally,
brokered deposits decreased to $739.2 million at March 31, 2009, compared to
$739.9 million at December 31, 2008.  We expect these deposits to
decline further as they continue to mature in the future.





Non-performing
assets were $237.9 million and $192.9 million, representing 5.26% and 4.34% of
total assets as of March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008,
respectively.  As of March 31, 2009, non-performing loans consisted of
$68.3 million residential and condominium conversion construction real estate
loans, $13.5 million of land development loans, $27.0 million of other
construction projects, $58.8 million of multi-family loans and $20.3 million in
commercial real estate loans.  The allowance for loan loss coverage
ratio (defined as the allowance for loan losses divided by non-accrual loans)
was 33.5% at March 31, 2009 as compared to 32.7% at December 31,
2008.  In addition, our other real estate and other assets owned
increased to $49.9 million at March 31, 2009, as compared to $38.0 million at
December 31, 2008.  As of March 31, 2009, other real estate and other
assets owned consisted of $20.6 million of multi-family real estate, $18.2
million of commercial and multi-family construction projects, $7.6 million of
residential land development, $874,000 of residential and condominium conversion
construction projects, $1.6 million of commercial real estate and $1.0 million
of other assets owned.





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The
allowance for loan losses as a percentage of our total loans was 2.29% and 1.81%
at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, respectively.  We believe
that these reserves levels were adequate to support known and inherent losses in
our loan portfolio and for specific reserves as of March 31, 2009 and December
31, 2008.  The allowance for loan losses is impacted by inherent risk
in the loan portfolio, including the level of our non-performing loans and other
loans of concern, as well as specific reserves and charge-off
activity.  During the quarter ended March 31, 2009, we had net
charge-offs of $6.8 million compared to $3.8 million for the same period last
year.  The charge-offs taken have reduced the balances on the loans to
the estimated value of the underlying real estate collateral based upon recent
appraisals.





At March
31, 2009, shareholders' equity totaled $170.7 million or 3.8% of total
assets.  Our book value per share of common stock was $33.65 as of
March 31, 2009, a decrease of 10.9% from $37.76 per share as of December 31,
2008.





The Bank
had Tier 1 leverage, Tier 1 risk-based and total risk-based capital ratios at
March 31, 2009 of 5.15%, 6.88% and 8.13%, respectively, which represents $52.9
million, $99.1 million and $4.6 million, respectively, of capital in excess of
the amount required to be “adequately capitalized” for regulatory
purposes.  Capital in excess (deficit) of the amount required to be
“well capitalized” for regulatory purposes was $6.8 million, $30.2 million and
($64.3) million, respectively.  In addition, the Company, the Bank’s
holding company, had Tier 1 leverage, Tier 1 risk-based and total risk-based
capital ratios at March 31, 2009 of 4.63%, 6.19% and 8.22%, respectively, which
represents $29.2 million, $75.6 million and $7.8 million, respectively, of
capital in excess of the amount required to be “adequately
capitalized”.  Capital in excess (deficit) of the amount required to
be “well capitalized” for regulatory purposes was ($17.0) million, $6.5 million
and ($61.3) million, respectively.  During 2008, the Bank formed a
wholly-owned subsidiary, Imperial Capital Bank Resecuritization Trust 2008-1
(the Trust), for the purpose of re-securitizing its portfolio of corporate
sponsored CMOs.  The Bank transferred all of its right, title and
other ownership interests in the CMOs to the Trust in exchange for notes issued
by the Trust (the Notes). These re-securitized bonds were rated by independent
rating agencies giving consideration to the purchase discounts and credit
enhancements associated with each specific bond.  The Notes issued by
the Trust were then rated.  As of March 31, 2009, 25.1% of the Notes
were rated below investment grade by the investment rating
agencies.  These Note ratings were risk-weighted in accordance with
the Bank’s reading of applicable regulatory capital guidance. This guidance,
however, does not contemplate the specific type of re-securitization transaction
undertaken by the Bank.  After discussions with the FDIC, the Bank was told
to file its December 31, 2008 call report based on the Bank’s understanding of
the risk-based capital treatment of the re-securitized portfolio of
CMOs.  In April 2009 the FDIC informed the Bank that because it had
not sold any of the Notes, it could not rely on its interpretation of the
applicable regulatory guidance.





Accordingly,
the current investment ratings for the underlying CMOs were utilized in
calculating the capital ratios disclosed above.  Because of the
investment rating downgrades associated with our portfolio of CMOs, the Bank is
required to maintain higher levels of regulatory risk-based capital for these
securities due to the greater perceived risk of default.





Doyle
concluded:  “While we are clearly dissatisfied with our quarterly
results, we firmly believe that the successful implementation of our strategic
plan will return the Company to profitability.  As financial markets
ultimately stabilize, this plan will improve the financial wherewithal of the
Company, as well as address many of the regulatory issues identified under the
Cease and Desist Order that we are currently operating under. With respect to
the Order, we remain committed to working with our regulators to achieve full
compliance with the matters set forth in the Order.”





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“Safe
Harbor” statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:
This release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and
uncertainties, including, but not limited to, changes in economic conditions,
either nationally or in our market areas; fluctuations in loan demand, the
number of unsold homes, other properties and real estate values; the quality or
composition of our loan or investment portfolios; our ability to manage loan
delinquency rates, which may be impacted by deterioration in the housing and
commercial real estate markets that may lead to increased losses and
non-performing assets in our loan portfolios, and may result in our allowance
for loan losses not being adequate to cover actual losses and may require us to
materially increase our reserves; fluctuations in interest rates, and changes in
the relative differences between short- and long-term interest rates; results of
examinations by the California Department of Financial Institutions (the “DFI”),
the FDIC or other regulatory authorities, including the possibility that any
such regulatory authority may, among other things, require us to increase our
reserve for loan losses, write-down assets, change our regulatory capital
position or affect our ability to borrow funds or maintain or increase deposits,
which could adversely affect our liquidity and earnings; the possibility that we
will be unable to comply with the conditions imposed upon us by the Order to
Cease and Desist issued by the DFI and the FDIC, which could result in the
imposition of additional restrictions on our operations; our ability to control
operating costs and expenses; the use of estimates in determining fair value of
certain of our assets, which estimates may prove to be incorrect and result in
significant declines in valuation; difficulties in reducing risk associated with
the loans on our balance sheet; staffing fluctuations in response to product
demand or the implementation of corporate strategies that affect our work force
and potential associated charges; computer systems on which we depend could fail
or experience a security breach; our ability to retain key members of our senior
management team; costs and effects of litigation, including settlements and
judgments; increased competitive pressures among  financial services
companies; changes in consumer spending, borrowing, and savings habits;
legislative or regulatory changes that adversely affect our business, including
changes in regulatory policies and principles, including the interpretation of
regulatory capital or other rules; the availability of resources to address
changes in laws, rules, or regulations or to respond to regulatory actions;
adverse changes in the securities markets; the inability of key third-party
providers to perform their obligations to us; changes in accounting
policies,  principles or guidance, as may be adopted by the financial
institution regulatory agencies or the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or
their application to our business or audit adjustments; the economic impact of
any terrorist actions; other economic, competitive, governmental, regulatory,
and technological factors affecting our operations, pricing, products, and
services. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking
statements. We do not undertake and specifically disclaim any obligation to
revise any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of anticipated
or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements.
These risks could cause our actual results for 2009 and beyond to differ
materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements by, or on
behalf of, us, and could negatively affect the Company’s operating and stock
price performance.





Imperial
Capital Bancorp, Inc. is a publicly traded diversified bank holding company
specializing in commercial real estate lending on a national basis and is
headquartered in San Diego, California. The Company conducts its operations
through Imperial Capital Bank and Imperial Capital Real Estate Investment Trust.
Imperial Capital Bank has nine retail branch locations, including six branches
in California (Beverly Hills, Costa Mesa, Encino, Glendale, San Diego and San
Francisco), two branches in Nevada (Carson City and Las Vegas), and one branch
in Baltimore, Maryland.





For
additional information, contact Timothy M. Doyle, Executive Managing Director
and Chief Financial Officer, at (858) 551-0511.





www.imperialcapitalbancorp.com




IMPERIAL
      CAPITAL BANCORP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIESCONSOLIDATED
      BALANCE SHEETSMarch
      31,2009
                          
                          
                          December
      31,(unaudited)
                          
                          
                          2008(in
      thousands, except share amounts)AssetsCash
      and cash equivalents
                          
                          $
                          325,438
                          
                          
                          $
                          403,119Investment
      securities available-for-sale, at fair value
                          
                          
                          404,041
                          
                          
                          
                          146,799Investment
      securities held-to-maturity, at amortized cost
                          
                          
                          905,565
                          
                          
                          
                          942,686Stock
      in Federal Home Loan Bank
                          
                          
                          63,498
                          
                          
                          
                          63,498Loans,
      net (net of allowance for loan losses of $62,938 and$50,574
      as of March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, respectively)
                          
                          
                          2,680,832
                          
                          
                          
                          2,748,956Interest
      receivable
                          
                          
                          20,772
                          
                          
                          
                          21,305Other
      real estate and other assets owned, net
                          
                          
                          49,947
                          
                          
                          
                          38,031Other
      assets
                          
                          
                          70,010
                          
                          
                          
                          75,444Total
      assets
                          
                          $
                          4,520,103
                          
                          
                          $
                          4,439,838Liabilities
      and Shareholders' EquityLiabilities:Deposit
      accounts
                          
                          $
                          3,109,142
                          
                          
                          $
                          2,931,040Federal
      Home Loan Bank advances and other borrowings
                          
                          
                          1,124,794
                          
                          
                          
                          1,205,633Accounts
      payable and other liabilities
                          
                          
                          28,904
                          
                          
                          
                          26,996Junior
      subordinated debentures
                          
                          
                          86,600
                          
                          
                          
                          86,600Total
      liabilities
                          
                          
                          4,349,440
                          
                          
                          
                          4,250,269Commitments
      and contingenciesShareholders’
      equity:Preferred
      stock, 5,000,000 shares authorized, none issued
                          
                          
                          -
                          
                          
                          
                          -Contributed
      capital - common stock, $.01 par value; 20,000,000 sharesauthorized,
      9,146,256 and 9,146,256 issued as of March 31, 2009and
      December 31, 2008, respectively
                          
                          
                          85,129
                          
                          
                          
                          85,407Retained
      earnings
                          
                          
                          204,749
                          
                          
                          
                          222,483Accumulated
      other comprehensive loss, net
                          
                          
                          (4,031
                          )
                          
                          
                          (2,682
                          )285,847
                          
                          
                          
                          305,208Less
      treasury stock, at cost - 4,074,834 and 4,126,116 sharesas
      of March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, respectively
                          
                          
                          (115,184
                          )
                          
                          
                          (115,639
                          )Total
      shareholders’ equity
                          
                          
                          170,663
                          
                          
                          
                          189,569Total
      liabilities and shareholders’ equity
                          
                          $
                          4,520,103
                          
                          
                          $
                          4,439,838


IMPERIAL
      CAPITAL BANCORP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIESCONSOLIDATED
      STATEMENTS OF CONDITION(UNAUDITED)For
      the Three Months EndedMarch
      31,2009
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    2008(in
      thousands,except
      per share amounts)Interest
      income:Loans
      receivable, including fees
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    41,463
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    54,835Cash,
      cash equivalents and investment securities
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    20,329
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    4,249Total
      interest income
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    61,792
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    59,084Interest
      expense:Deposit
      accounts
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    28,439
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    25,083Federal
      Home Loan Bank advances and other borrowings
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    12,787
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    11,918Junior
      subordinated debentures
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    1,637
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    2,005Total
      interest expense
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    42,863
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    39,006Net
      interest income before provision for loan losses
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    18,929
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    20,078Provision
      for loan losses
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    19,175
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    4,250Net
      interest income (expense) after provision for loan losses
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    (246
                                                    )
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    15,828Non-interest
      income:Late
      and collection fees
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    210
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    219Other
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    403
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    49Total
      non-interest income
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    613
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    268Non-interest
      expense:Compensation
      and benefits
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    6,049
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    6,864Occupancy
      and equipment
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    1,743
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    1,942Other
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    6,562
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    4,684Total
      general and administrative
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    14,354
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    13,490Real
      estate and other assets owned expense, net
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    997
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    428Provision
      for losses on real estate and other assets owned
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    2,507
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    627Loss
      on sale of real estate and other assets owned, net
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    243
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    400Total
      real estate and other assets owned expense, net
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    3,747
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    1,455Total
      non-interest expense
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    18,101
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    14,945(Loss)
      income before provision for income taxes
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    (17,734
                                                    )
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    1,151Provision
      for income taxes
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    -
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    
                                                    454NET
      (LOSS) INCOME
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    (17,734
                                                    )
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    697BASIC
      (LOSSES) EARNINGS PER SHARE
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    (3.27
                                                    )
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    0.13DILUTED
      (LOSSES) EARNINGS PER SHARE
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    (3.27
                                                    )
                                                    
                                                    $
                                                    0.13