Business First Bancshares is the holding company for b1BANK, a Louisiana-based community bank focused on serving small-to-midsized businesses and their owners across Louisiana and Texas. The bank's core product is commercial lending — primarily C&I loans (working capital lines, term loans, equipment financing) and commercial real estate loans — targeting businesses with credit needs in the $1M–$10M range that are too complex for smaller community banks but too small to get dedicated attention from large regional banks. b1BANK operates through banking centers and loan production offices in Louisiana markets (Baton Rouge, Northwest, Northeast, and Southwest Louisiana) and Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston), selling through relationship-based local teams led by market presidents with meaningful credit authority. The bank earns primarily through net interest income, targeting mid-single-digit loan growth, with NIM in the 3.63–3.64% range. Beyond core commercial banking, b1BANK operates a Correspondent Banking unit serving roughly 175 community bank clients with investment portfolio management, SBA loan services, and interest rate swaps. Wealth management is offered through SSW and b1Securities. The bank runs a branch-lite model and targets an efficiency ratio below 60%. Growth comes from organic deepening in existing markets, selective hiring of bankers from larger institutions, and opportunistic M&A — though management has indicated M&A is on pause through at least 2026 while it integrates recent deals.