FED Firstfed Financial Corp

The Board of Directors of FirstFed Financial Corp. (NYSE:FED) today announced that Nicholas C. Biase has been appointed by the Board of Directors of the Company to a seat on the Board. Biase currently serves as a representative and a Member of the Board of Directors of Findim Group S.A., a financial holding corporation for a group of companies in the real estate, agriculture and finance sectors. His direct responsibilities, among others, are in international fiscal matters, investments in financial markets, acquisitions of participations, supervision of affiliates in all the Americas, and strategies and policy making for the Group. Findim is the investment vehicle for the Fossati family of Italy and owns 9.9% of FirstFed Financial Corp. Biase joined Findim in 1996 after successful tenures as Vice President of REFCO, a company involved in the trading and brokerage in futures, foreign exchange and interest rate areas, and as President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Montauk Lake Club, an investment property and operating company. He was also previously a Member of the Board of Directors of Monterey Bay Bancorp (1997-2002). Biase�s other current Board of Director affiliations include his status as a Member of PASA Board of Directors; PASA is a privately-held Spanish/Italian food company. According to Babette Heimbuch, FirstFed�s Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, �We are pleased to welcome Nick to FirstFed�s Board of Directors. His banking experience and expertise in financial markets, along with his strong stockholder perspective, will enhance and strengthen the Company�s continuing commitment to a total alignment with our investors. FirstFed Financial Corp. is the parent holding company of First Federal Bank of California, a $7.1 billion banking institution with 37 retail offices throughout Southern California. This news release contains certain forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to various factors, many of which are beyond the Company�s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to, the general business environment, interest rate fluctuations, the availability of branch opening opportunities, competitive conditions in the business and geographic areas in which the Company conducts its business and regulatory actions. In addition, these forward-looking statements are subject to assumptions as to future business strategies and decisions that are subject to change. The Company makes no guarantees or promises regarding future results and assumes no responsibility to update such forward-looking statements.