The Company uses derivative instruments to manage exposure to market risk, primarily interest rate and foreign currency risks, as well as to assist customers with their risk management objectives. The Company’s goal is to manage interest rate sensitivity and volatility to mitigate the effect of interest rate changes on earnings or capital. The Company also uses foreign exchange contracts to manage the foreign exchange rate risk associated with certain foreign currency-denominated assets and liabilities, as well as the Bank’s investment in East West Bank (China) Limited. The Company recognizes all derivatives on the Consolidated Balance Sheet at fair value. While the Company designates certain derivatives as hedging instruments in a qualifying hedge accounting relationship, other derivatives serve as economic hedges. For additional information on the Company’s derivatives and hedging activities, see Note 1 — Summary of Significant Accounting Policies — Significant Accounting Policies — Derivatives to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K.

The following table presents the notional amounts and fair values of the Company’s derivatives as of December 31, 2023 and 2022. Certain derivative contracts are cleared though central clearing organizations where variation margin is applied daily as settlement to the fair values of the contracts. The fair values are presented on a gross basis prior to the application of bilateral collateral and master netting agreements, but after the application of variation margin payments as settlement to fair values of contracts cleared through central clearing organizations. Applying variation margin payments as settlement to the fair values of derivative contracts cleared through the London Clearing House (“LCH”) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (“CME”) resulted in reductions in both the derivative asset and liability fair values of $43 million as of December 31, 2023. In comparison, applying variation margin payments as settlement to LCH- and CME-cleared derivative transactions resulted in reductions in the derivative asset and liability fair values of $167 million and $81 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2022. Total derivative asset and liability fair values are adjusted to reflect the effects of legally enforceable master netting agreements and cash collateral received or paid. The resulting net derivative asset and liability fair values are included in Other assets and Accrued expenses and other liabilities, respectively, on the Consolidated Balance Sheet.



	December 31, 2023								December 31, 2022
			Fair Value								Fair Value
($ in thousands)	Notional Amount		Assets			Liabilities			Notional Amount		Assets			Liabilities
Derivatives designated as hedging instruments:


Cash flow hedges:
Interest rate contracts	$	5,250,000	$	50,421		$	13,124		$	3,450,000	$	13,455		$	19,687
Net investment hedges:
Foreign exchange contracts	81,480		3,394			—			84,832		5,590			—
Total derivatives designated as hedging instruments	$	5,331,480	$	53,815		$	13,124		$	3,534,832	$	19,045		$	19,687

Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments:
Interest rate contracts	$	17,387,909	$	423,486		$	420,812		$	16,932,414	$	426,828		$	564,829
Commodity contracts (1)	—		79,604			121,670			—		261,613			258,608
Foreign exchange contracts	5,827,149		53,678			42,564			2,982,891		47,519			44,117
Credit contracts (2)	118,391		1			25			140,950		—			23
Equity contracts	—		336		(3)	15,119		(4)	—		323		(3)	—
Total derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	$	23,333,449	$	557,105		$	600,190		$	20,056,255	$	736,283		$	867,577
Gross derivative assets/liabilities			$	610,920		$	613,314				$	755,328		$	887,264
Less: Master netting agreements			(75,534)			(75,534)					(242,745)			(242,745)
Less: Cash collateral received/paid			(237,258)			(636)					(372,038)			—
Net derivative assets/liabilities			$	298,128		$	537,144				$	140,545		$	644,519

(1)The notional amount of the Company’s commodity contracts totaled 18,631 thousand barrels of crude oil and 328,844 thousand units of natural gas, measured in million British thermal units (“MMBTUs”) as of December 31, 2023. In comparison, the notional amount of the Company’s commodity contracts totaled 12,005 thousand barrels of crude oil and 247,704 thousand MMBTUs of natural gas as of December 31, 2022.

Cash Flow Hedges — The Company uses interest rate swaps to hedge the variability in interest amount received on certain floating-rate commercial loans, or paid on certain floating-rate borrowings due to changes in contractually specified interest rates. As of December 31, 2023, interest rate contracts with total notional amount of $5.3 billion were designated as cash flow hedges to convert certain variable-rate loans from floating-rate payments to fixed-rate payments. Gains and losses on the hedging derivative instruments are recognized in AOCI and reclassified to earnings in the same period the hedged cash flows impact earnings and within the same income statement line item as the hedged cash flows. Considering the interest rates, yield curve and notional amounts as of December 31, 2023, the Company expects to reclassify an estimated $47 million of after-tax net losses on derivative instruments designated as cash flow hedges from AOCI into earnings during the next 12 months.

The following table presents the pre-tax changes in AOCI from cash flow hedges for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. The after-tax impact of cash flow hedges on AOCI is shown in Note 15 — Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K.



	Year Ended December 31,
($ in thousands)	2023			2022		2021
(Losses) gains recognized in AOCI:
Interest rate contracts	$	(5,767)		$	(74,069)	$	1,210
Gains (losses) reclassified from AOCI into earnings:
Interest expense (for cash flow hedges on borrowings)	$	696		$	3,200	$	(868)
Interest and dividend income (for cash flow hedges on loans)	(82,153)			(7,204)		—
Noninterest income	1,614		(1)	—		—
Total	$	(79,843)		$	(4,004)	$	(868)

Net Investment Hedges — The Company enters into foreign currency forward contracts to hedge a portion of the Bank’s investment in East West Bank (China) Limited, a non-USD functional currency subsidiary in China. The hedging instruments designated as net investment hedges were used to hedge against the risk of adverse changes in the foreign currency exchange rate of the RMB. The following table presents the pre-tax gains (losses) recognized in AOCI on net investment hedges for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021:

Customer-Related Positions and Economic Hedge Derivatives — The Company enters into interest rate, commodity, and foreign exchange derivatives at the request of its customers and generally enters into offsetting derivative contracts with third-party financial institutions to mitigate the inherent market risk. The Company also utilizes foreign exchange contracts to mitigate the effect of currency fluctuations on certain foreign currency-denominated on-balance sheet assets and liabilities, primarily foreign currency denominated deposits that it offers to its customers. A majority of the foreign exchange contracts had original maturities of one year or less as of both December 31, 2023 and 2022.



	December 31, 2023						December 31, 2022
			Fair Value						Fair Value
($ in thousands)	Notional Amount		Assets		Liabilities		Notional Amount		Assets		Liabilities
Customer-related positions:
Interest rate contracts:
Swaps	$	6,835,822	$	25,649	$	377,388	$	6,656,491	$	1,438	$	521,719
Written options	1,522,531		—		12,756		1,548,158		—		30,904
Collars and corridors	322,732		440		4,481		215,773		—		8,924
Subtotal	8,681,085		26,089		394,625		8,420,422		1,438		561,547
Foreign exchange contracts:
Forwards and spot	956,618		9,466		6,756		993,588		17,009		18,090
Swaps	1,588,491		5,801		18,118		623,143		6,629		12,178
Other	136,000		1,839		—		121,631		2,070		245
Subtotal	2,681,109		17,106		24,874		1,738,362		25,708		30,513
Total	$	11,362,194	$	43,195	$	419,499	$	10,158,784	$	27,146	$	592,060
Other economic hedges:
Interest rate contracts:
Swaps	$	6,861,561	$	380,123	$	25,731	$	6,683,828	$	384,201	$	2,047
Purchased options	1,522,531		12,783		—		1,580,275		32,233		—
Written options	—		—		—		32,117		—		1,235
Collars and corridors	322,732		4,491		456		215,772		8,956		—
Subtotal	8,706,824		397,397		26,187		8,511,992		425,390		3,282
Foreign exchange contracts:
Forwards and spot	148,003		292		94		77,998		3,050		87
Swaps	2,862,037		36,280		15,757		1,044,900		18,516		11,447
Other	136,000		—		1,839		121,631		245		2,070
Subtotal	3,146,040		36,572		17,690		1,244,529		21,811		13,604
Total	$	11,852,864	$	433,969	$	43,877	$	9,756,521	$	447,201	$	16,886

The Company enters into energy commodity contracts with its customers in the oil and gas sector, which allow them to hedge against the risk of fluctuation in energy commodity prices. Offsetting contracts entered with third-party financial institutions are used as economic hedges to manage the Company’s exposure on its customer-related positions. The following table presents the notional amounts in units and the gross fair values of the commodity derivatives issued for customer-related positions and other economic hedges as of December 31, 2023 and 2022:



	December 31, 2023						December 31, 2022
			Fair Value						Fair Value
($ in thousands)	Notional Units		Assets		Liabilities		Notional Units		Assets		Liabilities
Customer-related positions:
Commodity contracts:
Crude oil:
Swaps	3,277	Barrels	$	3,735	$	15,445	2,465	Barrels	$	39,955	$	6,178
Collars	5,966	Barrels	1,820		5,103		3,011	Barrels	16,038		2,630
Written options	—	Barrels	—		—		—	Barrels	558		—
Subtotal	9,243	Barrels	5,555		20,548		5,476	Barrels	56,551		8,808
Natural gas:
Swaps	118,325	MMBTUs	438		73,793		92,590	MMBTUs	112,314		73,208
Collars	45,854	MMBTUs	21		20,400		32,072	MMBTUs	2,217		18,317
Written options	1,874	MMBTUs	—		233		—	MMBTUs	—		—
Subtotal	166,053	MMBTUs	459		94,426		124,662	MMBTUs	114,531		91,525
Total			$	6,014	$	114,974			$	171,082	$	100,333
Other economic hedges:
Commodity contracts:
Crude oil:
Swaps	3,422	Barrels	$	9,166	$	4,924	2,587	Barrels	$	6,935	$	36,060
Collars	5,966	Barrels	1,685		1,467		3,942	Barrels	1,378		12,856
Purchased options	—	Barrels	—		—		—	Barrels	—		516
Subtotal	9,388	Barrels	10,851		6,391		6,529	Barrels	8,313		49,432
Natural gas:
Swaps	116,463	MMBTUs	49,941		305		91,900	MMBTUs	69,767		106,883
Collars	44,454	MMBTUs	12,565		—		31,142	MMBTUs	12,451		1,960
Purchased options	1,874	MMBTUs	233		—		—	MMBTUs	—		—
Subtotal	162,791	MMBTUs	62,739		305		123,042	MMBTUs	82,218		108,843
Total			$	73,590	$	6,696			$	90,531	$	158,275

Credit Contracts — The Company periodically enters into credit RPAs with institutional counterparties to manage the credit exposure of the interest rate contracts associated with syndication loans. Under the RPAs, a portion of the credit exposure is transferred from one party (the purchaser of credit protection) to another party (the seller of credit protection). The seller of credit protection is required to make payments to the purchaser of credit protection if the underlying borrower defaults on the related interest rate contract. The Company may enter into protection sold or protection purchased RPAs. Credit risk on RPAs is managed by monitoring the credit worthiness of the borrowers and the institutional counterparties, which is a part of the Company’s normal credit review and monitoring process. All reference entities of the protection sold RPAs were investment grade, and the weighted-average remaining maturity was 2.8 years and 2.4 years as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Assuming the underlying borrowers referenced in the interest rate contracts defaulted as of December 31, 2023, the maximum exposure of protection sold RPAs would be $177 thousand. In comparison, assuming the underlying borrowers referenced in the interest rate contracts defaulted as of December 31, 2022, the Company would not have any current exposure in the protection sold RPAs.

Equity Contracts — As part of the loan origination process, the Company may obtain warrants to purchase the preferred and/or common stock of the borrowers’ companies, which are mainly in the technology and life sciences sectors. Warrants grant the Company the right to buy a certain class of the underlying company’s equity at a certain price before expiration. In connection with the Company’s investment in Rayliant during the third quarter of 2023, the Company granted performance-based RSUs as part of its consideration. The vesting of these equity contracts is contingent on Rayliant meeting certain financial performance targets during the future performance period. For additional information on these equity contracts, refer to Note 2 — Fair Value Measurement and Fair Value of Financial Instruments and Note 7 — Investments in Qualified Affordable Housing Partnerships, Tax Credit and Other Investments, Net and Variable Interest Entities to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K.



	Classification on Consolidated Statement of Income	Year Ended December 31,
($ in thousands)		2023		2022		2021
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments:
Interest rate contracts	Customer derivative income	$	(2,989)	$	13,905	$	11,493
Foreign exchange contracts	Foreign exchange income	52,817		13,799		45,921
Credit contracts	Customer derivative income	(1)		118		139
Equity contracts - warrants	Lending fees	13		151		382
Commodity contracts	Customer derivative income	(25)		48		(58)
Net gains		$	49,815	$	28,021	$	57,877

Credit-Risk-Related Contingent Features — Certain of the Company’s over-the-counter derivative contracts contain early termination provisions that require the Company to settle any outstanding balances upon the occurrence of a specified credit-risk-related event. Such an event primarily relates to a downgrade in the credit rating of East West Bank to below investment grade. As of December 31, 2023, the aggregate fair value amounts of all derivative instruments with credit risk-related contingent features that were in a net liability position totaled $9 thousand, for which no collateral was posted to cover these positions. In comparison, as of December 31, 2022, the aggregate fair value amounts of all derivative instruments with credit risk-related contingent features that were in a net liability position totaled $3 million, for which $1 million of collateral was posted to cover these positions. In the event that the credit rating of East West Bank had been downgraded to below investment grade, minimal additional collateral would have been required to be posted as of both December 31, 2023 and 2022.

The following tables present the gross derivative fair values, the balance sheet netting adjustments, and the resulting net fair values recorded on the Consolidated Balance Sheet, as well as the cash and noncash collateral associated with master netting arrangements. The gross amounts of derivative assets and liabilities are presented after the application of variation margin payments as settlements to the fair values of contracts cleared through central clearing organizations, where applicable. The collateral amounts in the following tables are limited to the outstanding balances of the related asset or liability. Therefore, instances of overcollateralization are not shown:



($ in thousands)	As of December 31, 2023
	Gross Amounts Recognized (1)		Gross Amounts Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet				Net Amounts Presented on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Gross Amounts Not Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Net Amount
			Master Netting Arrangements		Cash Collateral Received (3)				Security Collateral Received (5)
Derivative assets	$	610,920	$	(75,534)	$	(237,258)	$	298,128	$	(246,259)	$	51,869

	Gross Amounts Recognized (2)		Gross Amounts Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet				Net Amounts Presented on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Gross Amounts Not Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Net Amount
			Master Netting Arrangements		Cash Collateral Pledged (4)				Security Collateral Pledged (5)
Derivative liabilities	$	613,314	$	(75,534)	$	(636)	$	537,144	$	—	$	537,144



($ in thousands)	As of December 31, 2022
	Gross Amounts Recognized (1)		Gross Amounts Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet				Net Amounts Presented on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Gross Amounts Not Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Net Amount
			Master Netting Arrangements		Cash Collateral Received (3)				Security Collateral Received (5)
Derivative assets	$	755,328	$	(242,745)	$	(372,038)	$	140,545	$	(60,567)	$	79,978

	Gross Amounts Recognized (2)		Gross Amounts Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet				Net Amounts Presented on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Gross Amounts Not Offset on the Consolidated Balance Sheet		Net Amount
			Master Netting Arrangements		Cash Collateral Pledged (4)				Security Collateral Pledged (5)
Derivative liabilities	$	887,264	$	(242,745)	$	—	$	644,519	$	(38,438)	$	606,081

(3)Gross cash collateral received under master netting arrangements or similar agreements were $244 million and $385 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Of the gross cash collateral received, $237 million and $372 million were used to offset against derivative assets as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

(4)Gross cash collateral pledged under master netting arrangements or similar agreements were $1 million and $490 thousand as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Of the gross cash collateral pledged, $1 million was used to offset against derivative liabilities as of December 31, 2023. In comparison, no cash collateral was used to offset against derivative liabilities as of December 31, 2022.

(5)Represents the fair value of security collateral received or pledged limited to derivative assets or liabilities that are subject to enforceable master netting arrangements or similar agreements. U.S. GAAP does not permit the netting of noncash collateral on the Consolidated Balance Sheet but requires disclosure of such amounts.

In addition to the amounts included in the tables above, the Company has balance sheet netting related to the resale and repurchase agreements. Refer to Note 3 — Assets Purchased under Resale Agreements and Sold under Repurchase Agreements to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K for additional information. Refer to Note 2 — Fair Value Measurement and Fair Value of Financial Instruments to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K for fair value measurement disclosures on derivatives.