Regulators Curb First Guaranty Lending Over Credit Risks

First Guaranty Bank, a Louisiana-chartered community lender based in Hammond, is supervised by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions. Its elevated pool of nonperforming and criticized credits has raised concerns about asset quality and borrower concentration, making the regulators’ move notable: consent orders often mandate governance and capital repairs, but explicit restrictions on which existing customers a bank may continue financing are relatively uncommon.

The bank agreed to a consent order barring new credit to borrowers with loans rated Loss or with charged-off debt that remains uncollected; lending to borrowers with Doubtful or Substandard credits requires written board approval. At June 30, 2026, special-mention and substandard relationships totaled $186.6 million and $276.6 million, respectively. First Guaranty completed the sale of five Texas branches to Armstrong Bank on July 31, transferring about $270 million of deposits and $110 million of loans to bolster capital.