Business First Bancshares, the holding company for b1 Bank, completed its acquisition of Texas-based Oakwood Bancshares and its bank subsidiary Oakwood Bank this week, the company announced late Tuesday.
The $85.7 million deal was announced in April, at a time when many are switching to community banks, pushing back against a wave of consolidation that has concentrated deposits and loans in the hands of a few banking juggernauts.
In recent years, b1Bank’s holding company has also acquired Pedestal Bancshares Inc., Texas Citizens Bankcorp Inc. and Waterstone LSP.
With the completion of the acquisition, b1Bank now holds approximately $7.6 billion in assets, with $5.9 billion in loans and $6.3 billion in deposits. The bank operates 55 full-service banking centers and two loan production offices across Louisiana and Texas.
Roy J. Salley, chair and CEO of Oakwood Bank, joins b1Bank as regional chair for Dallas, and William G. Hall, chair of Oakwood Bancshares Inc., will join the boards of directors of Business First and b1Bank.
