1St Century Bancshares, Inc. (FCTY) SEC Filing 10-K Annual report for the fiscal year ending Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Exhibit 99.1

Contact Information:

Alan I. Rothenberg Chairman/Chief Executive Officer

Phone: (310) 270-9501

Jason P. DiNapoli

President/Chief Operating Officer

Phone: (310) 270-9505

1^st CENTURY BANCSHARES, INC. REPORTS FINANCIAL RESULTS

FOR THE QUARTER AND YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2014

Los Angeles, CA (March 5, 2015) – 1st Century Bancshares, Inc. (the “Company”) (NASDAQ:FCTY), the holding company for 1st Century Bank, N.A. (the “Bank”), today reported net income for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2014 of $554,000 and $2.4 million, respectively, compared to $217,000 and $6.9 million for the same periods last year. The net income variance during the year ended December 31, 2014, compared to the same period last year, was primarily attributable to a $5.0 million increase in income tax provisions. This increase was related to an income tax benefit of approximately $3.1 million recognized during the year ended December 31, 2013 in connection with the reversal of our deferred tax valuation allowance, as compared to $1.9 million of income tax provisions recognized during the year ended December 31, 2014. Pre-tax, pre-provision earnings for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2014 was $1.1 million and $4.4 million, respectively, compared to $736,000 and $3.9 million for the same periods last year. Included in net income for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2014 are gains in connection with the sale of securities of $196,000 and $1.2 million, respectively, compared to $117,000 and $822,000 for the same periods last year.

Pre-tax, pre-provision earnings, a non-GAAP financial measure, is presented because management believes adjusting the Company’s results to exclude taxes and loan loss provisions provides stockholders with a useful metric for evaluating the profitability of the Company. A schedule reconciling our GAAP net income to pre-tax, pre-provision earnings is provided in the table below.

Alan I. Rothenberg, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, stated, “I’m proud to announce our financial results for the year ended December 31, 2014. During the year, our loans and deposits have grown by over 15% and 11%, respectively, and despite the current low interest rate environment, our pre-tax, pre-provision earnings improved to $4.4 million and our net interest margin increased by 9 basis points, to 3.28%. In addition, asset quality remains strong with total non-performing assets to total assets at 11 basis points at the end of the year. We also sold $59.9 million of investment securities during the year, recognizing a gain of $1.2 million. In addition to being a source of interest income for the Company, our investment portfolio has recently generated realized gains as a result of favorable changes in market conditions.”

Jason P. DiNapoli, President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company, added, “During the past 12 months, we’ve continued to establish and expand our presence on the Westside of Los Angeles. With the addition of our new Beverly Hills office, complemented by the strength of our current relationship management team, I believe that we’re well positioned to make 2015 the most successful year in our Company’s history.”

2014 4th Quarter Highlights