Paul Irving
EAST WEST BANCORPAbout Paul H. Irving
Paul H. Irving (age 72) is an independent director of East West Bancorp, Inc., serving since 2010 and currently chairing the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee while also sitting on the Audit and Risk Oversight Committees . Irving is Senior Advisor at the Milken Institute (since 2022), previously President and founding chair of its Center for the Future of Aging (2011–2021) . He brings deep governance, legal/regulatory, and policy expertise from prior leadership at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP and advisory roles across non-profit and policy bodies .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milken Institute | Senior Advisor | 2022–present | Strategic governance and policy advisory |
| Milken Institute | President; Founding Chair, Center for the Future of Aging | 2011–2021 | Built thought leadership on aging, health, and societal challenges |
| Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP | Chair, CEO, Head of Financial Services Group | Not disclosed | Governance, regulatory, legal advisory to financial services |
| Harvard University | Advanced Leadership Fellow | Not disclosed | Leadership development |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Nature |
|---|---|---|
| CoGenerate | Board member | Non-profit governance |
| CWI Labs | Senior Advisor | Workforce/economic advisory |
| National Academy of Medicine Global Commission on Healthy Longevity | Member | Health policy |
| USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology | Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence; Board of Councilors member | Academic governance |
| Working Nation | Advisory Board member | Workforce/media advisory |
| Quadrivio Group Silver Economy Fund | International Strategic Committee member | Strategic advisory to investment fund |
| Public company boards | None | EWBC discloses no other public company directorships for Irving |
Board Governance
- Independence: Board determined all directors except CEO Dominic Ng are independent; Irving is independent .
- Committees and chair roles:
- Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee: Chair (2 meetings in 2024)
- Audit Committee: Member (9 meetings in 2024)
- Risk Oversight Committee: Member (4 meetings in 2024)
- Attendance & engagement:
- Board held 4 regular meetings plus a multi-day retreat in 2024; all director nominees (including Irving) attended all regular Board and committee meetings in which they served, and the retreat; all directors attended the 2024 annual meeting .
- Independent directors meet in executive session at every regularly scheduled Board meeting, chaired by the Lead Independent Director .
- Board leadership: Combined Chair/CEO with a strong Lead Independent Director role (Lester M. Sussman) .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Structure / Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (non-employee directors) | $133,750 (2024) | Reviewed biennially; benchmarked by Meridian Compensation Partners |
| Committee chair fees | Nominating/Corporate Governance Chair: $22,500 (2024) | Audit/Comp/Risk $27,500; Nominating $22,500 |
| Irving – Cash earned | $156,268 (2024) | Reflects base retainer plus chair retainer |
| Equity grant (annual) | $133,750 value (2024) | Granted as common stock (not options/PSUs) |
| Irving – Stock award value | $133,732 (2024) | 1,818 shares granted 5/28/2024 at $73.56 close |
Performance Compensation
- EWBC discloses non-employee directors receive an annual stock grant and cash retainer; no performance-linked metrics (e.g., PSUs with ROA/ROE/TSR hurdles) are tied to director compensation .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Category | Status |
|---|---|
| Current public company boards | None (Irving) |
| Potential interlocks with EWBC competitors/customers/suppliers | Not disclosed in proxy; EWBC reported no related-party transactions >$120,000 in 2024 other than ordinary-course loans to some directors at market terms with no adverse features |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Governance, regulatory, policy, and legal expertise from professional services leadership; system-level perspectives on economic, social, and health challenges .
- Identified skills matrix indicates high-level financial expertise, senior leadership, international/geopolitical exposure, social/corporate governance, bank regulatory oversight, extensive knowledge of EWBC’s business, and risk oversight/management expertise for Irving .
- Risk oversight: Member of Risk Oversight Committee; Board’s risk process includes enterprise risk categories and regular reporting to the Board .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (Paul H. Irving) | 40,989 shares as of 4/3/2025 |
| Shares outstanding (EWBC) | 137,801,455 as of record date |
| Ownership as % of outstanding | ~0.03% (40,989 ÷ 137,801,455) |
| Director stock ownership guidelines | 3× annual cash retainer; to be met within 5 years of election |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited by Insider Trading Policy |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths:
- Independence and engagement: Irving is independent, chairs Nominating/Corporate Governance, and had 100% attendance at Board/committee meetings, supporting board effectiveness and refreshment .
- Risk oversight: Active role on Risk Oversight Committee amid robust enterprise risk management structure; board includes designated “risk experts” and meets enhanced prudential standards .
- Alignment: Annual stock grant, ownership guidelines (3× cash retainer), and anti-hedging/anti-pledging policy enhance investor alignment .
- Shareholder sentiment: Say-on-Pay approval was ~98.7% at the 2024 meeting, suggesting broad investor confidence in EWBC’s compensation governance framework .
- Potential conflicts:
- Related-party exposure: EWBC reported no related-party transactions requiring approval in 2024; ordinary-course director loans were on market terms and showed no adverse features (e.g., nonaccrual/past due), mitigating conflict risk .
- Interlocks: Irving holds no other public company directorships, reducing risk of competitive or supplier/customer interlocks .
- RED FLAGS:
- None disclosed for Irving regarding low attendance, hedging/pledging, tax gross-ups, option repricing, or related-party transactions; EWBC policies prohibit hedging/pledging and gross-ups, and do not allow option re-pricing without shareholder approval .
Implications: Irving’s role as Nominating/Corporate Governance Chair and consistent attendance signal strong board process discipline, while independence, alignment policies, and absence of disclosed conflicts support investor confidence in EWBC’s governance oversight .