Colony Financial Declares Fourth Quarter 2011 Dividend

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Colony Financial, Inc. (the “Company”) (NYSE: CLNY) today announced that the Company’s Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per common share for the fourth quarter of 2011. The dividend will be paid on January 17, 2012, to stockholders of record on December 30, 2011. The Company's dividend policy is set by its Board of Directors and is evaluated based upon the deployment of the Company's capital and its taxable earnings and cash flow.

About Colony Financial, Inc.

Colony Financial, Inc. is a real estate finance and investment company that is focused primarily on acquiring and originating commercial real estate loans and real estate-related debt at attractive risk-adjusted returns. Secondary debt purchases may include performing, sub-performing or non-performing loans (including loan-to-own strategies). Colony Financial has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust, or REIT, for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Colony Financial is a component of the Russell 2000® and the Russell 3000® indices. For more information, visit www.colonyfinancial.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements relate to expectations, beliefs, projections, future plans and strategies, anticipated events or trends and similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” or “potential” or the negative of these words and phrases or similar words or phrases which are predictions of or indicate future events or trends and which do not relate solely to historical matters. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and contingencies, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, that may cause actual results to differ significantly from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. Statements regarding the following subjects, among others, may be forward-looking: the Company’s business and investment strategy; the Company's ability to maintain its qualification as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes; and the Company's ability to maintain its exemption from registration under the 1940 Act.

All forward-looking statements reflect the Company’s good faith beliefs, assumptions and expectations, but they are not guarantees of future performance. Furthermore, the Company disclaims any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect changes in underlying assumptions or factors, of new information, data or methods, future events or other changes. For a further discussion of these and other factors that could cause the Company’s future results to differ materially from any forward-looking statements, see the section entitled “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 filed with the SEC on March 7, 2011, the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2011, June 30, 2011 and September 30, 2011, filed with the SEC on May 10, 2011, August 8, 2011 and November 9, 2011, respectively, and other risks described in documents subsequently filed by the Company from time to time with the SEC.

Investor Contact:Colony Financial, Inc.Darren TangenChief Financial Officer310-552-7230orAddo Communications, Inc.Andrew Blazier, 310-829-5400[email protected]orMedia Contact:Owen Blicksilver P.R., Inc.Caroline Luz, 203-656-2829[email protected]

Source: Colony Financial, Inc.