West Bancorporation, Inc. Exits TARP

West Bancorporation, Inc. WTBA announces that it has redeemed all $36,000,000 of the preferred stock it sold to the United States Treasury on December 31, 2008, under the Capital Purchase Program ("TARP"). "We are extremely pleased to be able to repay all of the TARP funds so quickly while maintaining our well-capitalized status without borrowing any money or issuing any stock," said David Nelson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. "We participated in TARP out of an abundance of caution given the historic turmoil in the capital markets during 2008, and that turned out to be a wise decision. Since then we have navigated through some tough financial storms and now we are confident of our future without government investment. Redemption of the TARP stock is very good news for our shareholders and the Company because we are now relieved of some additional regulatory burdens and we no longer have to pay preferred stock dividends. Since December 31, 2008, we have paid $4,495,000 in dividends to the Treasury. We can now use our improving earnings to compensate our shareholders and retain capital for future growth."