 Business First Bancshares, Inc. Business First BFST, the holding company for b1BANK, and Pedestal Bancshares, Inc. Pedestal today jointly announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which Business First will acquire Pedestal and its wholly owned bank subsidiary, Pedestal Bank. On a pro forma basis as of December 31, 2019, the combined institution would have been the 3rd largest Louisiana-headquartered bank, with total assets of approximately 3.5 billion. This is a transformative, franchise-building opportunity for our company, said Jude Melville, President and CEO of Business First. 