HOUSTON - Sterling Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: SBIB) will make a presentation at the 2004 Gulf South Bank Conference on Wednesday, April 28, 2004 at 10:30 a.m. Central Standard Time (11:30 a.m. EST). J. Downey Bridgwater, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Stephen C. Raffaele, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer will present on behalf of Sterling Bancshares, Inc.

Interested individuals may listen to a live audio webcast of the presentation by visiting http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/confLobby.zhtml?ticker=SBIB&item_id=878539. The replay will be available one hour after the presentation and will be accessible for approximately 30 days at the same address.

The webcast is also being distributed over CCBN's Investor Distribution Network to institutional investors. Institutional investors can access the call via CCBN's password protected event management site, StreetEvents (www.streetevents.com).

Sterling Bancshares, Inc. is a Houston-based bank holding company that operates 37 bank offices in the greater metro areas of Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. Sterling's common stock is traded through the Nasdaq National Market System under the symbol SBIB. For more information on Sterling Bancshares, please visit the Company's web site at www.banksterling.com.