CU Bancorp, the parent company of wholly owned California United Bank, announced that William C. Phillips joined the bank as SVP, senior relationship manager focusing on the Greater Los Angeles area. Phillips will be based out of California United Bank’s South Bay office and focus on serving small- and middle-market businesses and business owners.

He has 20 years of banking experience and joins California United Bank from East West Bank, where he led a banking team focused on structured finance and C&I lending for middle-market companies in Southern California.

David I. Rainer, chairman, president and chief executive officer of California United Bank and CU Bancorp, said, “We are very excited to add another highly experienced and accomplished banking executive to our relationship management team. I have known Bill for more than 15 years, and his knowledge of the Los Angeles market and thoughtful approach to developing highly customized financing and treasury solutions have helped him build an outstanding track record of finding, keeping and growing comprehensive banking relationships. He will be a great addition to our team and will play an integral part in the continued growth of the California United Bank franchise.”

Prior to serving as a senior vice president at East West Bank, Phillips was a senior vice president at Comerica Bank, where he worked for more than a decade, developing a significant loan and deposit portfolio in his office leadership role. Prior to Comerica, he was a vice president at California United Bank prior to its sale to Pacific Century Financial Corporation, the parent of Bank of Hawaii.

California United Bank provides a full range of financial services, including credit and deposit products, cash management, and internet banking.