UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): ~~January~~February 234, 2026

CATHAY GENERAL BANCORP
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware		001-31830		95-4274680
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)		(Commission File Number)		(IRS Employer Identification No.)

777 North Broadway, Los Angeles, California 90012

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (213) 625-4700

Not Applicable

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

☐	Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐	Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common stock	CATY	Nasdaq Global Select Market

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Item 5.02

Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

On ~~January~~February 234, 2026, ~~Heng~~the W.board ~~Chen~~of ~~notified~~directors of Cathay General Bancorp (the “Company”), ~~that~~the heholding ~~will~~company ~~retire~~for asCathay ~~Chief~~Bank ~~Financial~~(the ~~Officer~~“Bank”), ofappointed ~~the~~Ms. ~~Company~~Lana ~~and~~Chan ~~Cathay~~to ~~Bank~~serve ~~(“Cathay”)~~as ~~and~~a ~~Treasurer~~director of both the Company ~~effective~~and ~~March~~the ~~1, 2026~~Bank. ~~Mr.~~She ~~Chen~~will ~~has~~begin ~~been~~serving ~~the~~as ~~Chief~~a ~~Financial~~Class ~~Officer~~I ~~and~~director ~~Treasurer~~effective as of the ~~Company~~same ~~since~~date. ~~2003~~The ~~and~~Class ~~Chief~~I ~~Financial~~directors ~~Officer~~will ofhold ~~Cathay~~office ~~Bank~~until ~~since~~the ~~2004.~~2027 ~~Mr.~~annual ~~Chen~~meeting ~~will~~of ~~continue~~stockholders toand ~~serve~~their assuccessors ~~Special~~are ~~Advisor~~elected toand ~~the~~qualified. ~~Office~~The ofCompany ~~the~~has ~~President~~not ~~for~~yet ~~Cathay~~determined ~~Bank~~whether ~~through~~Ms. ~~December~~Chan ~~31,~~will ~~2026,~~be ~~but~~assigned ~~will~~to noany ~~longer~~board becommittee. aTo ~~designated~~the ~~executive~~extent ~~officer~~the ofCompany ~~Cathay.~~decides Init ~~connection~~will ~~with~~appoint MrMs. ~~Chen’s~~Chan ~~new~~to ~~position~~any board committee, hethe Company will ~~receive~~file aan ~~monthly~~amended ~~compensation~~Form of8-K ~~$15,000~~to ~~through~~disclose ~~December~~Ms. ~~31,~~Chan’s ~~2026~~committee assignments.

~~Succeeding~~As ~~Mr. Chen, Albert J. Wang will be the Chief Financial Officer~~ of ~~Cathay and Treasurer of~~ the ~~Company~~same ~~effective March 1~~date, ~~2026.~~in In connection with ~~his~~the appointment, ~~Mr.~~Jane ~~Wang~~Jelenko, isa ~~expected~~member toof ~~receive~~the ~~compensation~~board ~~including~~of adirectors ~~base salary~~ of ~~$500,000~~the Company and ~~shall~~the ~~have~~Bank, ~~opportunities~~notified tothe ~~receive~~Company ~~cash~~of ~~and~~her ~~equity~~intention ~~bonus~~to ~~consistent~~retire ~~with~~effective ~~his~~April ~~predecessor~~30, as2026. ~~disclosed~~Ms. ~~in the Company~~Jelenko’s ~~proxy~~decision ~~statement. He is also expected~~ to ~~enter~~retire ~~into~~was not the ~~Company’s~~result ~~standard form~~ of ~~change~~any ofdisagreement ~~control~~with ~~employment~~the ~~agreement~~Company ~~filed~~on asany anmatter ~~exhibit~~relating to the Company’s ~~Form~~operations, ~~10K~~policies, or practices.

~~Albert~~Following J.the ~~Wang,~~appointment ~~age 50, has over 28 years~~ of ~~finance and accounting experience~~Ms. ~~Mr.~~Chan ~~Wang joined Cathay Bank as Executive Vice President~~ and ~~Deputy~~retirement ~~Chief~~of ~~Financial Officer in September 2025~~Ms. ~~Previously~~Jelenko, ~~he served as Executive Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer at Webster Bank from 2017 to 2025. Prior to that, Mr. Wang was~~ the ~~Chief~~Company ~~Accounting~~will ~~Officer~~have attwelve ~~Banc of California and served as its acting Chief Financial Officer. Earlier in his career~~directors, he8 held financial leadership roles at Santander Bank, most recently as its Chief Accounting Officer and was a Senior Manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP focused on its banking and capital market clients. He is a certified public accountant who brings in-depth knowledge of ~~publicly~~whom ~~traded~~will ~~commercial~~be ~~banks.~~considered ~~There~~to ~~are~~be ~~no family relationships between Mr~~independent. ~~Wang and any director or executive officer of the Company, and there are no relationships between Mr. Wang and the Company that require disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.~~

~~Item~~Lana 9Chan is a seasoned financial expert with over 30 years of experience in stock market analysis, risk assessment, and strategic advisory.01 ~~Financial~~From ~~Statements~~2005-2020, Lana served as a sell-side equity research analyst and ~~Exhibits~~Managing Director at BMO Capital Markets, focused on the banking industry. During her tenure, she provided analysis on bank profitability, credit and liquidity risk, and long-term strategy, with a specialized focus on niche markets including the Asian-American and high-net-worth banks. A trusted advisor to institutional investors, Lana is recognized for her ability to synthesize complex financial data into actionable insights and investment recommendations. Most recently, she provided consulting services for Cathay Bank (2022–Sept 2025), where she advised senior management on institutional investor visibility and engagement. Ms. Chan holds a B.S. degree with a double major in Finance and Information Systems.

Ms. Chan’s compensation for her services as a director will be consistent with that of the other non-employee directors of the Company, as described in the Company’s definitive proxy statement with respect to the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 10, 2025. There are no other arrangements or understandings between Ms. Chan and any other person pursuant to which she was elected as a director, and Ms. Chan is not a party to any transaction with the Company that would require disclosure under Item 404(da) ~~Exhibits~~of Regulation S-K.

99.1 Press Release of Cathay General Bancorp, dated January 23, 2026

104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

Date: January 23, 2026	CATHAY GENERAL BANCORP
	By:	/s/ Heng W. Chen
		Heng W. Chen
		Executive Vice President and
		Chief Financial Officer

Date: February 5, 2026

	CATHAY GENERAL BANCORP



	By:	/s/ Heng W. Chen
		Heng W. Chen
		Executive Vice President and
		Chief Financial Officer

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