Business
Business First Bancshares, Inc., Raises $72.0 Million in Preferred Equity
BATON ROUGE, La. , Sept. 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: BFST) (Business First), parent company of b1BANK, Baton Rouge,
About this update from Business First Bancshares, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"BATON ROUGE, La. , Sept. 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: BFST) (Business First), parent company of b1BANK, Baton Rouge, La., announced that it has successfully raised $72.0 million through a self-managed private placement of preferred stock. “This equity raise provides us with additional capital to support our continued growth and will assist with our efforts to support small businesses and entrepreneurs across our footprint,” said Jude Melville, president and CEO. “Our investments in recruiting and developing a talented team enabled us to accomplish this self-managed placement. We are gratified by the number of individuals, businesses and institutions that participated in this offering and eagerly support our mission. This is a reflection of the relationships we have built within our communities and the positive impact we make daily.” The preferred stock has a perpetual term, bears non-cumulative dividends, and has been structured to qualify as additional Tier 1 capital under applicable regulatory capital guidelines. Business First intends to use the proceeds to provide capital in support of b1BANK’s continuous growth, support strategic opportunities that may arise, repay existing holding company debt and other general corporate purposes. If declared by the Business First board of directors, dividends are payable at a fixed rate of 7.50% for the first five years following issuance and thereafter at a variable rate equal to the then-current 3-month secured overnight financing rate (SOFR), reset quarterly, plus 470 basis points. The preferred stock has a perpetual term and may not be redeemed, except under certain circumstances, during the first five years after issuance. Fenimore Kay Harrison LLP acted as legal adviser to Business First. About Business First Bancshares, Inc.As of June 30, 2022, Business First Bancshares, Inc., (Nasdaq: BFST) through its banking subsidiary b1BANK, has $5.5 billion in assets, $6.2 billion in assets under management through b1BANK’s affiliate Smith Shellnut Wilson LLC (SSW) (excludes $0.9 billion of b1BANK assets managed by SSW) and operates banking centers and loan production offices across Louisiana and Texas providing commercial and personal banking products and services. Commercial banking services include commercial loans and letters of credit, working cap...