Western Alliance Bancorporation Names Brown President of Equipment Finance/Leasing...

Western Alliance Bancorporation Names Brown President of Equipment Finance/Leasing Division

LAS VEGAS--(Business Wire)--
Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) President and CEO
Robert Sarver announced this week that Michael Brown has joined the
company as president and CEO of its affiliate Western Alliance
Leasing.

"Western Alliance is pleased to have Mike Brown as a member of our
team and leading our equipment finance/leasing group," said Sarver.
"He (Brown) is well respected in the leasing industry and brings a
wealth of equipment financing knowledge to our clients. With his
expertise and leadership, we plan to continue to grow our leasing
division and provide valuable partnerships to our business clients in
Arizona, California and Nevada."

Brown joins Western Alliance after serving as executive vice
president/Group Head of CIT Group, Equipment Finance the past three
years. Prior to that, he spent 13 years at Wells Fargo where he
managed regional leasing and equipment financing over a 12-state
territory. With 25 years of equipment finance and leasing experience,
Brown is a respected and familiar face in the banking and equipment
financing industry.

As an active member of the equipment financing industry, Brown
currently serves as a board member of the Equipment Leasing and
Finance Foundation and is currently serving on the Governmental
Affairs and Membership Committees. He also received a B.S. in Business
Administration from Kansas State University.

Western Alliance Leasing is an affiliate of Western Alliance
Bancorporation serving customers in Arizona, California and Nevada.
Specializing in equipment financing, Western Alliance Leasing is
dedicated in providing a relationship-based approach to product
delivery, superior customer service, local representation and
responsiveness with judicious and focused risk management.

Western Alliance Bancorporation is the parent company of Western
Alliance Leasing, Alliance Bank of Arizona, Bank of Nevada, First
Independent Bank of Nevada, Torrey Pines Bank, Alta Alliance Bank,
Miller/Russell & Associates, Shine Investment Advisory Services,
Premier Trust, and PartnersFirst. These dynamic organizations provide
a broad array of banking, leasing, trust, investment, and mortgage
services to clients. Additional information can be accessed on the
company's website, www.westernalliancebancorp.com.

Western Alliance Bancorporation
Robert Sarver, CEO, 602-952-5445
Dale Gibbons, CFO, 702-248-4200

Copyright Business Wire 2008