NEWS RELEASE
	Contact:	Donald P. Hileman
		President and CEO
		dhileman@first-fed.com
		Exhibit 99.1

For Immediate Release

FIRST DEFIANCE FINANCIAL CORP. ANNOUNCES 2015

FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS

DEFIANCE, OHIO (April 20, 2015) – First Defiance Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: FDEF) announced today that net income for the first quarter ended March 31, 2015 totaled $6.6 million, or $0.69 per diluted common share, compared to $5.2 million or $0.51 per diluted common share for the quarter ended March 31, 2014.

The first quarter 2014 results were negatively impacted by $786,000 ($511,000 after tax), or $0.05 per diluted common share, for costs to terminate a merger agreement.

“We are extremely pleased with our overall results for the first quarter, especially our progress regarding our strategic priorities,” said Donald P. Hileman, President and CEO of First Defiance Financial Corp. “Compared to the first quarter last year, total revenues grew by 9.7%, the efficiency ratio improved by over 5% and total nonperforming assets declined by 23.5%. We are very encouraged by such a strong start to 2015.”

Net Interest Income up from first quarter 2014

Net interest income of $18.2 million in the first quarter of 2015 was up from $16.8 million in the first quarter of 2014. The net interest margin increased to 3.88% in the first quarter of 2015 compared with 3.61% in the first quarter of 2014 and 3.76% in the fourth quarter of 2014. Yield on interest earning assets increased by 24 basis points, to 4.20% in the first quarter of 2015 from 3.96% in the first quarter of 2014. The cost of interest-bearing liabilities decreased by 3 basis points in the first quarter of 2015 to 0.42% from 0.45% in the first quarter of 2014.

“Our solid loan growth in the first quarter further improved our earning asset mix and yield, increasing our net interest margin,” said Hileman. “Our net interest margin improved to 3.88%, up 27 basis points from the first quarter last year; and net interest income increased $1.4 million, or 8.3%.”

Non-Interest Income up from first quarter 2014

First Defiance’s non-interest income for the first quarter of 2015 was $8.3 million compared with $7.3 million in the first quarter of 2014. Mortgage banking income was $1.8 million in the first quarter of 2015, up from $1.2 million in the first quarter of 2014. Gains from the sale of mortgage loans increased in the first quarter of 2015 to $1.3 million from $641,000 in the first quarter of 2014. Mortgage loan servicing revenue was $875,000 in the first quarter of 2015, down slightly from $905,000 in the first quarter of 2014. The Company had a positive change in the valuation adjustment in mortgage servicing rights of $26,000 in the first quarter of 2015 compared with a negative adjustment of $7,000 in the first quarter of 2014.

Service fees and other charges were $2.5 million in the first quarter of 2015, up from $2.3 million in the first quarter of 2014 due to the benefits of new fee structures and product redesigns implemented in the third quarter of 2014.

Income from the sale of insurance and investment products was $3.1 million for the first quarter of 2015, compared with $3.0 million in the first quarter of 2014. The first quarter typically includes contingent revenues, bonuses paid by insurance carriers when the Company achieves certain loss ratios or growth targets. In the first quarter of 2015, First Defiance’s insurance subsidiary, First Insurance Group, earned $967,000 of contingent income, compared to $878,000 during the first quarter of 2014.

“Our non-interest income was very strong this quarter, up 13% versus the same quarter last year, with improvements in all of our key business lines,” stated Hileman. “Lower interest rates aided in a notably robust quarter for mortgage banking where mortgage origination volumes were up 83% from the prior year.”

Non-Interest Expenses up from first quarter 2014

Total non-interest expense was $16.9 million in the first quarter of 2015, an increase from $16.7 million in the first quarter of 2014. Compensation and benefits increased to $8.9 million in the first quarter of 2015 compared to $8.5 million in the first quarter of 2014. The increase in compensation and benefits from a year ago is mainly related to merit increases and higher incentive compensation accruals partially offset by lower medical insurance costs. Occupancy expense was $1.8 million in the first quarter 2015, up from $1.6 million in the first quarter 2014. Data processing cost increased to $1.5 million in the first quarter of 2015 from $1.4 million in the first quarter of 2014. Other non-interest expense was $3.6 million in the first quarter of 2015, a decrease from $4.1 million in the first quarter of 2014. The decrease in other non-interest expense is due to a $786,000 cost in the first quarter 2014 for terminating a merger agreement which was partially offset by $522,000 of fixed asset and real estate owned write-downs in the first quarter of 2015.

Credit Quality

Nonperforming loans totaled $18.7 million at March 31, 2015, a decrease from $26.8 million at March 31, 2014. In addition, First Defiance had $6.4 million of real estate owned at March 31, 2015 compared to $6.0 million at March 31, 2014. Accruing troubled debt restructured loans were $19.6 million at March 31, 2015 compared with $26.7 million at March 31, 2014. For the first quarter of 2015, First Defiance recorded $416,000 of net recoveries versus net charge-offs of $270,000 in the first quarter of 2014. The allowance for loan loss as a percentage of total loans was 1.50% at March 31, 2015 compared with 1.58% at March 31, 2014.

The first quarter results include expense for provision for loan losses of $120,000, compared with $103,000 for the same period in 2014.

“Our asset quality improvement was significant this quarter with reductions in nonperforming loans of $5.4 million and restructured loans of $5.1 million,” said Hileman. “Our allowance for loan losses coverage of nonperforming loans is now over 135%.”

Total Assets at $2.2 Billion

Total assets at March 31, 2015 were $2.20 billion compared to $2.18 billion at December 31, 2014 and $2.16 billion at March 31, 2014. Net loans receivable (excluding loans held for sale) were $1.66 billion at March 31, 2015 compared to $1.62 billion at December 31, 2014 and $1.54 billion at March 31, 2014. Total cash and cash equivalents were $81.5 million at March 31, 2015 compared with $112.9 million at December 31, 2014 and $211.2 million at March 31, 2014. Also, at March 31, 2015, goodwill and other intangible assets totaled $63.7 million compared to $63.9 million at December 31, 2014 and $64.7 million at March 31, 2014.

Total deposits at March 31, 2015 were $1.77 billion compared with $1.76 billion at both December 31, 2014 and March 31, 2014. Non-interest bearing deposits at March 31, 2015 were $371.0 million compared to $379.6 million at December 31, 2014 and $338.4 million at March 31, 2014. Total stockholders’ equity was $273.1 million at March 31, 2015 compared to $279.5 million at December 31, 2014 and $274.9 million at March 31, 2014.

The reduction in stockholders’ equity from year-end 2014 includes the $12 million cost of the previously announced March 11, 2015 repurchase of the warrant issued to the U.S. Treasury under the TARP Capital Purchase Program.

Dividend to be paid May 28

The Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per common share payable May 28, 2015 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 21, 2015. The dividend represents an annual dividend of 2.46% based on the First Defiance common stock closing price on April 17, 2015. As of that date, First Defiance had approximately 9,253,133 common shares outstanding.

Conference Call

First Defiance will host a conference call at 11:00 a.m. (ET) on Tuesday, April 21, 2015 to discuss the earnings results and business trends. The conference call may be accessed by calling 1-877-444-1726. In addition, a live webcast may be accessed at http://services.choruscall.com/links/fdef150421.html.

Replay of the Internet Webcast will be available at www.fdef.com until April 21, 2016.

Annual Meeting of Shareholders

First Defiance will host its Annual Meeting of Shareholders at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 21, 2015. This Annual Meeting will be an entirely virtual meeting, meaning all shareholders will attend online. Following the meeting, the audio replay and transcript will be available at the Company’s Website at www.fdef.com.

First Defiance Financial Corp.

First Defiance Financial Corp., headquartered in Defiance, Ohio, is the holding company for First Federal Bank of the Midwest and First Insurance Group. First Federal operates 33 full-service branches and 42 ATM locations in northwest Ohio, southeast Michigan and northeast Indiana and a loan production office in Columbus, Ohio. First Insurance Group is a full-service insurance agency with five offices throughout northwest Ohio.

For more information, visit the company’s Web site at www.fdef.com.

Financial Statements and Highlights Follow-

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21 B of the Securities Act of 1934, as amended, which are intended to be safe harbors created thereby. Those statements may include, but are not limited to, all statements regarding intent, beliefs, expectations, projections, forecasts and plans of First Defiance Financial Corp. and its management, and specifically include statements regarding: changes in economic conditions, the nature, extent and timing of governmental actions and reforms, future movements of interest rates, the production levels of mortgage loan generation, the ability to continue to grow loans and deposits, the ability to benefit from a changing interest rate environment, the ability to sustain credit quality ratios at current or improved levels, the ability to sell real estate owned properties, continued strength in the market area for First Federal Bank of the Midwest, and the ability to grow in existing and adjacent markets. These forward-looking statements involve numerous risks and uncertainties, including those inherent in general and local banking, insurance and mortgage conditions, competitive factors specific to markets in which First Defiance and its subsidiaries operate, future interest rate levels, legislative and regulatory decisions or capital market conditions and other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in our Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014. One or more of these factors have affected or could in the future affect First Defiance's business and financial results in future periods and could cause actual results to differ materially from plans and projections. Therefore, there can be no assurances that the forward-looking statements included in this news release will prove to be accurate. In light of the significant uncertainties in the forward-looking statements included herein, the inclusion of such information should not be regarded as a representation by First Defiance or any other persons, that our objectives and plans will be achieved. All forward-looking statements made in this news release are based on information presently available to the management of First Defiance. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

As required by U.S. GAAP, First Defiance will evaluate the impact of subsequent events through the issuance date of its March 31, 2015 consolidated financial statements as part of its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q to be filed with the SEC. Accordingly, subsequent events could occur that may cause First Defiance to update its critical accounting estimates and to revise its financial information from that which is contained in this news release.