ITEM 1. BUSINESS

BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY

Overview and History

The Company was incorporated on June 23, 1995 to serve as a bank holding company for The First, A National Banking Association (“The First”), headquartered in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The Company is a Mississippi corporation and is a registered financial holding company. The First began operations on August 5, 1996 from our main office in the Oak Grove community, which is now incorporated within the city of Hattiesburg. As of December 31, 2017, The First operated its main office and 43 full-service branches, one motor branch, and four loan production offices in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida. Our principal executive offices are located at 6480 U.S. Highway 98 West, Hattiesburg, Mississippi 39402, and our telephone number is (601) 268-8998.

The Company is a community-focused financial institution that offers a full range of financial services to individuals, businesses, municipal entities, and nonprofit organizations in the communities that it serves. These services include consumer and commercial loans, deposit accounts, trust services, safe deposit services and brokerage services.

We exited the recent recession with strong asset quality metrics compared to most of our peers, which we believe illustrates our historically disciplined underwriting and credit culture. As such, we benefited from our strength by taking advantage of growth opportunities when many of our peers were unable to do so. Since that time, we focused on growing earnings per share and increasing our tangible common equity and tangible book value per share. In addition, we returned to strong levels of loan growth by continuing to strengthen our relationships with existing clients and creating new relationships.

In April 2013, we completed our first post-recession acquisition with the purchase of First National Bank of Baldwin County, which resulted in our strategic entry into the south Alabama market. In July 2014 we completed our acquisition of Bay Bank, previously headquartered in Mobile, Alabama. The conversion and integration of these acquisitions have been successful to date, and we are optimistic that this market will continue to contribute to our future growth and success. Also in 2014 we established a de novo branch in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and a loan production office in Slidell, Louisiana.

On January 1, 2017, we completed the acquisitions of Iberville Bank and Gulf Coast Community Bank, which allowed us to expand our footprint in Florida and Louisiana. We paid a total of $31.1 million in cash for all of the outstanding equity securities of Iberville Bank. $2.5 million of the purchase price was held in escrow as contingency for flood-related losses in the loan portfolio incurred due to flooding in Iberville’s market area in the fall of 2016. The Company expects to receive $498,207 from the escrow for settlement of flood-related loans.

We paid an aggregate purchase price for Gulf Coast of $2.3 million, consisting of 89,591 shares of our common stock, in exchange for all of the outstanding equity securities of Gulf Coast. System integration for both acquisitions was completed during the second quarter of 2017.

As of December 31, 2017, we had 415 full-time employees and 8 part-time employees, and as of March 13, 2018, we had 481 full-time employees and 6 part-time employees.

Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context requires otherwise, all references in this report to “the Company”, “we”, “us”, “our”, or similar references, mean The First Bancshares, Inc. and our subsidiaries, including our banking subsidiary, The First, A National Banking Association on a consolidated basis. References to “The First” or the “Bank” mean our wholly owned banking subsidiary, The First, A National Banking Association.

Market Areas

The First currently operates in four states: Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida, as discussed below.

Recent Developments

On December 6, 2017, the Company entered into an agreement and plan of merger to acquire Sunshine Financial, Inc. (“Sunshine”), the holding company of Sunshine Community Bank. Pursuant to the merger agreement, Sunshine will merge with and into First Bancshares, with First Bancshares as the surviving company, (the “Sunshine Merger.”) Immediately after the Sunshine Merger, Sunshine Community Bank, a Florida-state chartered bank and wholly owned subsidiary of Sunshine, will merge with and into The First, with The First as the surviving bank. The transaction was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of each of First Bancshares and Sunshine and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2018. Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, and approval of Sunshine’s shareholders.

Under the terms of the agreement, holders of Sunshine common stock will receive, at the election of each Sunshine shareholder, either (i) $27.00 in cash, or (ii) 0.93 of a share of First Bancshares’ common stock, provided that the total mix of merger consideration is fixed at 75% stock and 25% cash. The aggregate transaction consideration is valued at approximately $32.1 million.

At December 31, 2017, Sunshine had approximately $201 million in total consolidated assets, $168 million in total consolidated loans, $143 million in total consolidated deposits and $22 million in stockholder’s equity.

On March 1, 2018, we completed our merger (the “Southwest Merger”) with Southwest Banc Shares, Inc. (“Southwest”), the holding company of First Community Bank. Southwest was merged with and into the Company, with the Company as the surviving corporation, and, immediately thereafter, First Community Bank was merged with and into The First (collectively with the Southwest Merger referred to as the “Mergers”). The Company issued 1,134,010 shares of Company common stock valued at approximately $36,004,818 as of March 1, 2018, plus $24 million in cash, to the Southwest shareholders as consideration for the Southwest Merger. Each outstanding share of the Company’s common stock remained outstanding and was unaffected by the Mergers.

At December 31, 2017, Southwest had consolidated assets of $401 million, loans of $281 million, deposits of  $354 million, and shareholders’ equity of $37 million.

Banking Services

We strive to provide our customers with the breadth of products and services offered by large regional banks, while maintaining the timely response and personal service of a locally owned and managed bank. In addition to offering a full range of deposit services and commercial and personal loans, we have a mortgage division. The following is a description of the products and services we offer.

Deposit Services . We offer a full range of deposit services that are typically available in most banks and savings institutions, including checking accounts, NOW accounts, savings accounts, and other time deposits of various types, ranging from daily money market accounts to longer-term certificates of deposit. The transaction accounts and time certificates are tailored to our principal market areas at rates competitive to those offered by other banks in these areas. All deposit accounts are insured by the FDIC up to the maximum amount allowed by law. We solicit these accounts from individuals, businesses, associations and organizations, and governmental authorities. In addition, we offer certain retirement account services, such as Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs).

Loan Products . We offer a full range of commercial and personal loans. Commercial loans include both secured and unsecured loans for working capital (including loans secured by inventory and accounts receivable), business expansion (including acquisition of real estate and improvements), and purchase of equipment and machinery. Consumer loans include equity lines of credit and secured and unsecured loans for financing automobiles, home improvements, education, and personal investments. We also make real estate construction and acquisition loans. Our lending activities are subject to a variety of lending limits imposed by federal law. While differing limits apply in certain circumstances based on the type of loan or the nature of the borrower (including the borrower's relationship to the bank), in general we are subject to an aggregate loans-to-one-borrower limit of 15% of our unimpaired capital and surplus.

Mortgage Loan Division . We have a residential mortgage loan division which originates loans to purchase existing residential homes or construct new homes and to refinance existing mortgages.

Private Banking Division. We have a private banking division, which offers financial services and wealth management services to individuals who meet certain criteria.

Other Services . Other bank services we offer include on-line internet banking services, voice response telephone inquiry services, commercial sweep accounts, cash management services, safe deposit boxes, travelers checks, mobile deposit, direct deposit of payroll and social security checks, and automatic drafts for various accounts. We are associated with the automated teller machines that may be used by our customers throughout our market area and other regions. The First also offers credit card services through a correspondent bank.

Competition

The First generally competes with other financial institutions through the selection of banking products and services offered, the pricing of services, the level of service provided, the convenience and availability of services, and the degree of expertise and the personal manner in which services are offered. State law permits statewide branching by banks and savings institutions, and many financial institutions in our market area have branch networks. Consequently, commercial banking in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida is highly competitive. Many large banking organizations currently operate in our market area, several of which are controlled by out-of-state ownership. In addition, competition between commercial banks and thrift institutions (savings institutions and credit unions) has been intensified significantly by the elimination of many previous distinctions between the various types of financial institutions and the expanded powers and increased activity of thrift institutions in areas of banking which previously had been the sole domain of commercial banks. Federal legislation, together with other regulatory changes by the primary regulators of the various financial institutions, has resulted in the almost total elimination of practical distinctions between a commercial bank and a thrift institution. Consequently, competition among financial institutions of all types is largely unlimited with respect to legal ability and authority to provide most financial services. Currently there are numerous other commercial banks, savings institutions, and credit unions operating in The First's primary service area.

We face increased competition from both federally-chartered and state-chartered financial and thrift institutions, as well as credit unions, consumer finance companies, insurance companies, and other institutions in the Company's market area. Some of these competitors are not subject to the same degree of regulation and restriction imposed upon the Company. Many of these competitors also have broader geographic markets and substantially greater resources and lending limits than the Company and offer certain services such as trust banking that the Company does not currently provide. In addition, many of these competitors have numerous branch offices located throughout the extended market areas of the Company that may provide these competitors with an advantage in geographic convenience that the Company does not have at present.

We also compete with numerous financial and quasi-financial institutions for deposits and loans, including providers of financial services over the internet.  Recent technology advances and other changes have allowed parties to effect financial transactions that previously required the involvement of banks.  For example, consumers can maintain funds in brokerage accounts or mutual funds that would have historically been held as bank deposits.  Consumers can also complete transactions such as paying bills and transferring funds directly without the assistance of banks. 

Available Information

We file reports with the SEC. We make available free of charge, on or through our website www.thefirstbank.com , our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other filings pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and amendments to such filings, as soon as reasonably practicable after each is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. You may read and copy any materials we file with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20549. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the Commission at 1-800-SEC-0330. The SEC maintains a website that contains the Company’s reports, proxy statements, and the Company’s other SEC filings. The address of the SEC’s website is www.sec.gov. Information appearing on the Company’s website is not part of any report that it files with the SEC.

SUPERVISION AND REGULATION

The Company and The First are subject to state and federal banking laws and regulations which impose specific requirements or restrictions on and provide for general regulatory oversight with respect to virtually all aspects of our operations. These laws and regulations are generally intended to protect depositors, the deposit insurance fund ("DIF") of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) and the stability of the U.S. banking system as a whole, rather than for the protection of our shareholders and creditors. To the extent that the following summary describes statutory or regulatory provisions, it is qualified in its entirety by reference to the particular statutory and regulatory provisions. Any change in applicable laws or regulations may have a material effect on the business and prospects of the Company.

Beginning with the enactment of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 and following with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act of 1991 ("FDICIA"), and now most recently the sweeping Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (the “Dodd-Frank Act”), numerous regulatory requirements have been placed on the banking industry in the recent years. A significant volume of financial services regulations required by the Dodd-Frank Act have not yet been finalized by banking regulators, Congress continues to consider legislation that would make significant changes to the law and courts are addressing significant litigation arising under the Dodd-Frank Act, making it difficult to predict the ultimate effect of the Dodd-Frank Act on our business The operations of the Company and The First may be affected by legislative changes and the policies of various regulatory authorities. We are unable to predict the nature or the extent of the effect on our business and earnings that fiscal or monetary policies, economic control, or new federal or state legislation may have in the future.

Bank Holding Company Regulation

The Company is subject to extensive regulation by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”) pursuant to the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “Bank Holding Company Act”). We file quarterly reports and other information with the Federal Reserve. We file reports with the SEC and are subject to its regulation with respect to our securities, financial reporting and certain governance matters. Our securities are listed on the Nasdaq Global Market, and we are subject to Nasdaq rules for listed companies.

The Company is registered with the Federal Reserve as a bank holding company and has elected to be treated as a financial holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act. As such, the Company and its subsidiaries are subject to the supervision, examination and reporting requirements of the Bank Holding Company Act and the regulations of the Federal Reserve.

The Bank Holding Company Act generally prohibits a corporation that owns a federally insured financial institution (“bank”) from engaging in activities other than banking and managing or controlling banks or other subsidiaries engaging in permissible activities. Also prohibited is acquiring or obtaining control 5% or more of the voting interests of any company that engages in activities other than those activities determined by the Federal Reserve to be so closely related to banking, managing or controlling banks as to be a proper incident thereto. In determining whether a particular activity is permissible, the Federal Reserve considers whether the performance of the activity can reasonably be expected to produce benefits to the public that outweigh possible adverse effects. Examples of activities that the Federal Reserve has determined to be permissible are making, acquiring or servicing loans; leasing personal property; providing certain investment or financial advice; performing certain data processing services; acting as agent or broker in selling credit life insurance; and performing certain insurance underwriting activities. The Bank Holding Company Act does not place territorial limits on permissible bank-related activities of bank holding companies. Even with respect to permissible activities, however, the Federal Reserve has the power to order a holding company or its subsidiaries to terminate any activity or its control of any subsidiary when the Federal Reserve has reasonable cause to believe that continuation of such activity or control of such subsidiary would pose a serious risk to the financial safety, soundness or stability of any bank subsidiary of that holding company.

The Bank Holding Company Act requires every bank holding company to obtain the prior approval of the Federal Reserve before it: (1) acquires ownership or control of any voting shares of any bank if, after such acquisition, such bank holding company will own or control more than 5% of the voting shares of such bank, (2) causes any of its non-bank subsidiaries to acquire all of the assets of a bank, (3) merges with any other bank holding company, or (4) engages in permissible non-banking activities. In reviewing a proposed covered acquisition, the Federal Reserve considers a bank holding company’s financial, managerial and competitive posture. The future prospects of the companies and banks concerned and the convenience and needs of the community to be served are also considered. The Federal Reserve also reviews any indebtedness to be incurred by a bank holding company in connection with the proposed acquisition to ensure that the bank holding company can service such indebtedness without adversely affecting its ability, and the ability of its subsidiaries, to meet their respective regulatory capital requirements. The Bank Holding Company Act further requires that consummation of approved bank holding company or bank acquisitions or mergers must be delayed for a period of not less than 15 or more than 30 days following the date of Federal Reserve approval. During such 15 to 30-day period, the Department of Justice has the right to review the competitive aspects of the proposed transaction. The Department of Justice may file a lawsuit with the relevant United States District Court seeking an injunction against the proposed acquisition.

The Federal Reserve has adopted capital adequacy guidelines for use in its examination and regulation of bank holding companies and financial holding companies. The regulatory capital of a bank holding company or financial holding company under applicable federal capital adequacy guidelines is particularly important in the Federal Reserve’s evaluation of the overall safety and soundness of the bank holding company or financial holding company and are important factors considered by the Federal Reserve in evaluating any applications made by such holding company to the Federal Reserve. If regulatory capital falls below minimum guideline levels, a financial holding company may lose its status as a financial holding company and a bank holding company or bank may be denied approval to acquire or establish additional banks or non-bank businesses or to open additional facilities. Additionally, each bank subsidiary of a financial holding company as well as the holding company itself must be well capitalized and well managed as determined by the subsidiary bank’s primary federal regulator, which in the case of The First, is the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”). To be considered well managed, the bank and holding company must have received at least a satisfactory composite rating and a satisfactory management rating at its most recent examination. The Federal Reserve rates bank holding companies through a confidential component and composite 1-5 rating system, with a composite rating of 1 being the highest rating and 5 being the lowest. This system is designed to help identify institutions requiring special attention. Financial institutions are assigned ratings based on evaluation and rating of their financial condition and operations. Components reviewed include capital adequacy, asset quality, management capability, the quality and level of earnings, the adequacy of liquidity and sensitivity to interest rate fluctuations. As of December 31, 2017, the Company and The First were both well capitalized and well managed.

A financial holding company that becomes aware that it or a subsidiary bank has ceased to be well capitalized or well managed must notify the Federal Reserve and enter into an agreement to cure the identified deficiency. If the deficiency is not cured timely, the Federal Reserve may order the financial holding company to divest its banking operations. Alternatively, to avoid divestiture, a financial holding company may cease to engage in the financial holding company activities that are unrelated to banking or otherwise impermissible for a bank holding company. See “ Capital Requirements ” below for more information.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 established a comprehensive framework that permits affiliations among qualified bank holding companies, commercial banks, insurance companies, securities firms, and other financial service providers by revising and expanding the Bank Holding Company Act framework to permit a holding company to engage in a full range of financial activities through a financial holding company.

Federal Reserve Oversight

The Company is required to give the Federal Reserve prior written notice of any purchase or redemption of its outstanding equity securities if the gross consideration for the purchase or redemption, when combined with the net consideration paid for all such purchases or redemptions during the preceding 12 months, is equal to 10% or more of the Company’s consolidated net worth. The Federal Reserve may disapprove such a transaction if it determines that the proposed redemption or stock purchase would constitute an unsafe or unsound practice, would violate any law, regulation, Federal Reserve order or directive or any condition imposed by, or written agreement with, the Federal Reserve.

The Federal Reserve has issued its “Policy Statement on Cash Dividends Not Fully Covered by Earnings” (the “Policy Statement”) which sets forth various guidelines that the Federal Reserve believes a bank holding company should follow in establishing its dividend policy. In general, the Federal Reserve stated that bank holding companies should pay dividends only out of current earnings. The Federal Reserve also stated that dividends should not be paid unless the prospective rate of earnings retention by the holding company appears consistent with its capital needs, asset quality and overall financial condition.

The Company is required to file annual and quarterly reports with the Federal Reserve, and such additional information as the Federal Reserve may require pursuant to the Bank Holding Company Act. The Federal Reserve may examine a bank holding company or any of its subsidiaries.

Source of Strength Doctrine

Under the Dodd-Frank Act, bank holding companies must be well-capitalized and well-managed to engage in interstate transactions. In the past, only the subsidiary banks were required to meet those standards. The Federal Reserve Board’s “source of strength doctrine” has now been codified, mandating that bank holding companies such as the Company serve as a source of strength for their subsidiary banks, such that the bank holding company must be able to provide financial assistance in the event the subsidiary bank experiences financial distress.

Capital Requirements

Federal banking regulators have adopted a system using risk-based capital guidelines to evaluate the capital adequacy of banks and bank holding companies that is based upon the 1988 capital accord of the Bank for International Settlements’ Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (the “Basel Committee”), a committee of central banks and bank regulators from the major industrialized countries that coordinates international standards for bank regulation. Under the guidelines, specific categories of assets and off-balance-sheet activities such as letters of credit are assigned risk weights, based generally on the perceived credit or other risks associated with the asset. Off-balance-sheet activities are assigned a credit conversion factor based on the perceived likelihood that they will become on-balance-sheet assets. These risk weights are multiplied by corresponding asset balances to determine a “risk weighted” asset base which is then measured against various measures of capital to produce capital ratios.

An organization’s capital is classified in one of two tiers, Core Capital, or Tier 1, and Supplementary Capital, or Tier 2. Tier 1 capital includes common stock, retained earnings, qualifying non-cumulative perpetual preferred stock, minority interests in the equity of consolidated subsidiaries, a limited amount of qualifying trust preferred securities and qualifying cumulative perpetual preferred stock at the holding company level, less goodwill and most intangible assets. Tier 2 capital includes perpetual preferred stock and trust preferred securities not meeting the Tier 1 definition, mandatory convertible debt securities, subordinated debt, and allowances for loan and lease losses. Each category is subject to a number of regulatory definitional and qualifying requirements.

The Basel Committee in 2010 released a set of international recommendations for strengthening the regulation, supervision and risk management of banking organizations, known as Basel III. In July 2013, the Federal Reserve published final rules for the adoption of the Basel III regulatory capital framework (the “Basel III Capital Rules”). The Basel III Capital Rules became effective for us on January 1, 2015, with certain transition provisions phasing in over a period ending on January 1, 2019. The Basel III Capital Rules established a new category of capital measure, Common Equity Tier 1 capital, which includes a limited number of capital instruments from the existing definition of Tier 1 Capital, as well as raised minimum thresholds for Tier 1 Leverage capital (100 basis points), and Tier 1 Risk-based capital (200 basis points).

The Basel III Capital Rules established the following minimum capital ratios: 4.5 percent CET1 to risk-weighted assets; 6.0 percent Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets; 8.0 percent total capital to risk-weighted assets; and 4.0 percent Tier 1 leverage ratio to average consolidated assets. In addition, the Basel III Capital Rules also introduced a minimum “capital conservation buffer” equal to 2.5% of an organization’s total risk-weighted assets, which exists in addition to these new required minimum CET1, Tier 1, and total capital ratios. The “capital conservation buffer,” which must consist entirely of CET1, is designed to absorb losses during periods of economic stress. The Basel III Capital Rules provide for a number of deductions from and adjustments to CET1, which include the requirement that mortgage servicing rights, deferred tax assets arising from temporary differences that could not be realized through net operating loss carrybacks and significant investments in non-consolidated financial entities be deducted from CET1 to the extent that any one such category exceeds 10% of CET1 or all such categories in the aggregate exceed 15% of CET1.

The Company and The First elected in 2015 to exclude the effects of accumulated other comprehensive income items included in stockholders’ equity from the determination of regulatory capital under the Basel III Capital Rules. Based on estimated capital ratios using Basel III definitions, the Company and The First currently exceed all capital requirements of the new rule, including the fully phased-in conservation buffer.

Certain regulatory capital ratios of the Company and The First, as of December 31, 2017, are shown in the following table:

The essential difference between the leverage capital ratio and the risk-based capital ratios is that the latter identify and weight both balance sheet and off-balance sheet risks. Tier 1 capital generally includes common equity, retained earnings, qualifying minority interests (issued by consolidated depository institutions or foreign bank subsidiaries), accounts of consolidated subsidiaries and an amount of qualifying perpetual preferred stock, limited to 50% of Tier 1 capital. In calculating Tier 1 capital, goodwill and other disallowed intangibles and disallowed deferred tax assets and certain other assets are excluded. Tier 2 capital is a secondary component of risk-based capital, consisting primarily of perpetual preferred stock that may not be included as Tier 1 capital, mandatory convertible securities, certain types of subordinated debt and an amount of the allowance for loan losses (limited to 1.25% of risk weighted assets).

The risk-based capital guidelines are designed to make regulatory capital requirements more sensitive to differences in risk profiles among banks and bank holding companies, to take into account off-balance sheet exposure and to minimize disincentives for holding liquid assets. Under the risk-based capital guidelines, assets are assigned to one of four risk categories: 0%, 20%, 50% and 100%. For example, U.S. Treasury securities are assigned to the 0% risk category while most categories of loans are assigned to the 100% risk category. Off-balance sheet exposures such as standby letters of credit are risk-weighted and all or a portion thereof are included in risk-weighted assets based on an assessment of the relative risks that they present. The risk-weighted asset base is equal to the sum of the aggregate dollar values of assets and off-balance sheet items in each risk category, multiplied by the weight assigned to that category.

Prompt Corrective Action and Undercapitalization

The FDICIA established a system of prompt corrective action regulations and policies to resolve the problems of undercapitalized insured depository institutions. Under this system, insured depository institutions are ranked in one of five capital categories as described below. Regulators are required to take mandatory supervisory actions and are authorized to take other discretionary actions of increasing severity with respect to insured depository institutions in the three undercapitalized categories. The five capital categories for insured depository institutions under the prompt corrective action regulations consist of:

The prompt corrective action regulations provide that an institution may be downgraded to the next lower category if its regulator determines, after notice and opportunity for hearing or response, that the institution is in an unsafe or unsound condition or has received and not corrected a less-than-satisfactory rating for any of the categories of asset quality, management, earnings or liquidity in its most recent examination.

Federal bank regulatory agencies are required to implement arrangements for prompt corrective action for institutions failing to meet minimum requirements to be at least adequately capitalized. FDICIA imposes an increasingly stringent array of restrictions, requirements and prohibitions as an organization’s capital levels deteriorate. A bank rated "adequately capitalized" may not accept, renew or roll over brokered deposits. A "significantly undercapitalized" institution is subject to mandated capital raising activities, restrictions on interest rates paid and transactions with affiliates, removal of management and other restrictions. The OCC has only very limited discretion in dealing with a "critically undercapitalized" institution and generally must appoint a receiver or conservator (the FDIC) if the capital deficiency is not corrected promptly.

Under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (“FDIA”), “critically undercapitalized” banks may not, beginning 60 days after becoming critically undercapitalized, make any payment of principal or interest on their subordinated debt (subject to certain limited exceptions). In addition, under Section 18(i) of the FDIA, banks are required to obtain the advance consent of the FDIC to retire any part of their subordinated notes. Under the FDIA, a bank may not pay interest on its subordinated notes if such interest is required to be paid only out of net profits, or distribute any of its capital assets, while it remains in default on any assessment due to the FDIC.

Federal bank regulators may set capital requirements for a particular banking organization that are higher than the minimum ratios when circumstances warrant. Federal Reserve and OCC guidelines provide that banking organizations experiencing significant growth or making acquisitions will be expected to maintain strong capital positions substantially above the minimum supervisory levels, without significant reliance on intangible assets. Concentration of credit risks, interest rate risk (imbalances in rates, maturities or sensitivities) and risks arising from non-traditional activities, as well as an institution’s ability to manage these risks, are important factors taken into account by regulatory agencies in assessing an organization’s overall capital adequacy.

The OCC and the Federal Reserve also use a leverage ratio as an additional tool to evaluate the capital adequacy of banking organizations. The leverage ratio is a company’s Tier 1 capital divided by its average total consolidated assets. A minimum leverage ratio of 3.0% is required for banks and bank holding companies that either have the highest supervisory rating or have implemented the appropriate federal regulatory authority’s risk-adjusted measure for market risk. All other banks and bank holding companies are required to maintain a minimum leverage ratio of 4.0%, unless a different minimum is specified by an appropriate regulatory authority. In order to be considered well capitalized the leverage ratio must be at least 5.0%.

Our Bank’s leverage ratio was 11.4% at December 31, 2017 and, as a result, it is currently classified as “well capitalized” for purposes of the OCC’s prompt corrective action regulations.

The risk-based and leverage capital ratios established by federal banking regulators are minimum supervisory ratios generally applicable to banking organizations that meet specified criteria, assuming that they otherwise have received the highest regulatory ratings in their most recent examinations. Banking organizations not meeting these criteria are expected to operate with capital positions in excess of the minimum ratios. Regulators can, from time to time, change their policies or interpretations of banking practices to require changes in risk weights assigned to our Bank's assets or changes in the factors considered in order to evaluate capital adequacy, which may require our Bank to obtain additional capital to support existing asset levels or future growth or reduce asset balances in order to meet minimum acceptable capital ratios.

Additional Regulatory Issues

In June 2010, the Federal Reserve, the OCC and the FDIC issued joint guidance on executive compensation designed to help ensure that a banking organization’s incentive compensation policies do not encourage imprudent risk taking and are consistent with the safety and soundness of the organization. In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act required those agencies, along with the SEC, to adopt rules to require reporting of incentive compensation and to prohibit certain compensation arrangements. The objective of the guidance is to assure that incentive compensation arrangements (i) provide incentives that do not encourage excessive risk-taking, (ii) are compatible with effective internal controls and risk management and (iii) are supported by strong corporate governance, including oversight by the board of directors. In 2016, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC proposed rules that would, depending upon the assets of the institution, directly regulate incentive compensation arrangements and would require enhanced oversight and recordkeeping. As of December 31, 2017, these rules have not been implemented.

The Company is a legal entity separate and distinct from The First. There are various restrictions that limit the ability of The First to finance, pay dividends or otherwise supply funds to the Company or other affiliates. In addition, subsidiary banks of holding companies are subject to certain restrictions under Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act on any extension of credit to the bank holding company or any of its subsidiaries, on investments in the stock or other securities thereof and on the taking of such stock or securities as collateral for loans to any borrower. Further, a bank holding company and its subsidiaries are prohibited from engaging in certain tie-in arrangements in connection with extensions of credit, leases or sales of property, or furnishing of services.

Stress Testing

The Dodd-Frank Act requires stress testing of certain bank holding companies and banks that have more than $10 billion but less than $50 billion of consolidated assets (“medium-sized companies”). Additional stress testing is required for banking organizations having $50 billion or more of assets. Because the consolidated assets of the Company and The First are less than these threshold levels, the stress test requirements are not currently applicable to the Company or to The First.

Company Participation in Legislative and Regulatory Initiatives

The Congress, Treasury Department and the federal banking regulators, including the FDIC, have taken broad action since early September 2008 to address volatility in the U.S. banking system. In October 2008, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (“EESA”) was enacted. The EESA authorized the Treasury Department to purchase from financial institutions and their holding companies up to $700 billion in mortgage loans, mortgage-related securities and certain other financial instruments, including debt and equity securities issued by financial institutions and their holding companies in a troubled asset relief program (“TARP”).  The purpose of TARP was to restore confidence and stability to the U.S. banking system and to encourage financial institutions to increase their lending to customers and to each other.  The Treasury Department allocated $250 billion towards the TARP Capital Purchase Program (“CPP”), pursuant to which the Treasury Department purchased debt or equity securities from participating institutions.  The TARP also included the Community Development Capital Initiative (“CDCI”), which was made available only to certified Community Development Financial Institutions (“CDFIs”) and imposed a lower dividend or interest rate, as applicable, than the CPP funding. Participants in the TARP are subject to executive compensation limits and are encouraged to expand their lending and mortgage loan modifications.

On February 6, 2009, as part of the CPP, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement and Securities Purchase Agreement (collectively, the “Purchase Agreement”) with the Treasury Department, pursuant to which the Company sold (i) 5,000 shares of the Company’s Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series UST (the “CPP Preferred Stock”) and (ii) a warrant (the “Warrant”) to purchase 54,705 shares of the Company’s Common Stock for an exercise price of $13.71 per share. On September 29, 2010, after successfully obtaining CDFI certification, the Company exited the CPP by refinancing its CPP funding into lower-cost CDCI funding and also accepted additional CDCI funding. In connection with this transaction, the Company retired its CPP Preferred Stock and issued to the Treasury Department 17,123 shares of the Company’s Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series CD (the “CDCI Preferred Stock”). Including refinanced funding and newly obtained funding, the Company’s total CDCI funding was $17,123,000.

The America Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 (“ARRA”) contained expansive new restrictions on executive compensation for financial institutions and other companies participating in the TARP. As long as the Treasury continued to hold equity interests in the Company issued under the TARP, the Company monitored its compensation arrangements, modified such compensation arrangements, agreed to limit and limit its compensation deductions, and took such other actions as were necessary to comply with the standards discussed below. On December 6, 2016, the Company repurchased all 17,123 shares of its CDCI Preferred Shares from Treasury at fair market value. Therefore, as of December 6, 2016, the Company no longer had any obligations under TARP or the ARRA. However, as part of its repurchase obligations with the Treasury, the Company agreed to maintain its CDFI certification status for a period of two years. The eligibility requirements provide that the Company must:

• Have a primary mission of promoting community development;

• Provide both financial and educational services;

• Serve and maintain accountability to one or more defined target markets;

• Maintain accountability to a defined market; and

• Be a legal, non-governmental entity at the time of application (with the exception of Tribal governmental entities)

The First, A National Banking Association

OCC Regulation. The First operates as a national banking association incorporated under the laws of the United States and subject to supervision, inspection and examination by the OCC. The OCC regulates or monitors virtually all areas of The First’s operations, including security devices and procedures, adequacy of capitalization and loan loss reserves, loans, investments, borrowings, deposits, mergers, issuances of securities, payment of dividends, interest rates payable on deposits, interest rates or fees chargeable on loans, establishment of branches, corporate reorganizations, maintenance of books and records, and adequacy of staff training to carry on safe lending and deposit gathering practices. The OCC imposes limitations on The First’s aggregate investment in real estate, bank premises, and furniture and fixtures. The First is required by the OCC to prepare quarterly reports on its financial condition and to conduct an annual audit of its financial affairs in compliance with minimum standards and procedures prescribed by the OCC.

Safe and Sound Banking Practices; Enforcement .    Banks and bank holding companies are prohibited from engaging in unsafe and unsound banking practices. Bank regulators have broad authority to prohibit and penalize activities of bank holding companies and their subsidiaries which represent unsafe and unsound banking practices or which constitute violations of laws, regulations or written directives of or agreements with regulators. Regulators have considerable discretion in identifying what they deem to be unsafe and unsound practices and in pursuing enforcement actions in response to them.

Under FDICIA, all insured institutions must undergo regular on-site examinations by their appropriate banking agency. The cost of examinations of insured depository institutions and any affiliates may be assessed by the appropriate agency against each institution or affiliate as it deems necessary or appropriate. Insured institutions are required to submit annual reports to the FDIC and the appropriate agency. FDICIA also directs the FDIC to develop with other appropriate agencies a method for insured depository institutions to provide supplemental disclosure of the estimated fair market value of assets and liabilities, to the extent feasible and practicable, in any balance sheet, financial statement, report of condition, or any other report of any insured depository institution. FDICIA also requires the federal banking regulatory agencies to prescribe, by regulation, standards for all insured depository institutions and depository institution holding companies relating, among other things, to: (i) internal controls, information systems, and audit systems; (ii) loan documentation; (iii) credit underwriting; (iv) interest rate risk exposure; and (v) asset quality.

National banks and their holding companies which have been chartered or registered or undergone a change in control within the past two years or which have been deemed by the OCC or the Federal Reserve Board, respectively, to be troubled institutions must give the OCC or the Federal Reserve Board, respectively, thirty days prior notice of the appointment of any senior executive officer or director. Within the thirty-day period, the OCC or the Federal Reserve Board, as the case may be, may approve or disapprove any such appointment.

Deposit Insurance. The FDIC establishes rates for the payment of premiums by federally insured banks and thrifts for deposit insurance. Deposits in The First are insured by the FDIC up to a maximum amount (generally $250,000 per depositor, subject to aggregation rules). The DIF is maintained by the FDIC for commercial banks and thrifts and funded with insurance premiums from the industry that are used to offset losses from insurance payouts when banks and thrifts fail. Since 1993, insured depository institutions like The First have paid for deposit insurance under a risk-based premium system. Assessments are calculated based on the depository institution’s average consolidated total assets, less its average amount of tangible equity.

Transactions With Affiliates and Insiders. The First is subject to Section 23A of the Federal Reserve Act, which places limits on the amount of loans to, and certain other transactions with, affiliates, as well as on the amount of advances to third parties collateralized by the securities or obligations of affiliates. The aggregate of all covered transactions is limited in amount, as to any one affiliate, to 10% of The First's capital and surplus and, as to all affiliates combined, to 20% of The First's capital and surplus. Furthermore, within the foregoing limitations as to amount, each covered transaction must meet specified collateral requirements.

The First is also subject to Section 23B of the Federal Reserve Act, which prohibits an institution from engaging in certain transactions with affiliates unless the transactions are on terms substantially the same, or at least as favorable to such institution, as those prevailing at the time for comparable transactions with nonaffiliated companies. The First is subject to certain restrictions on extensions of credit to executive officers, directors, certain principal shareholders, and their related interests. Such extensions of credit (i) must be made on substantially the same terms, including interest rates and collateral, as those prevailing at the time for comparable transactions with third parties and (ii) must not involve more than the normal risk of repayment or present other unfavorable features.

Change in Control With certain limited exceptions, the BHCA and the Change in Bank Control Act, together with regulations promulgated thereunder, prohibit a person or company or a group of persons deemed to be “acting in concert” from, directly or indirectly, acquiring more than 10% (5% if the acquirer is a bank holding company) of any class of our voting stock or obtaining the ability to control in any manner the election of a majority of our directors or otherwise direct the management or policies of our company without prior notice or application to and the approval of the Federal Reserve.

Dividends. The principal source of funds from which we pay cash dividends are the dividends received from our bank subsidiary, The First. Federal banking laws and regulations restrict the amount of dividends and loans a bank may make to its parent company. A national bank may not pay dividends from its capital. All dividends must be paid out of undivided profits then on hand, after deducting expenses, including reserves for losses and bad debts. In addition, a national bank is prohibited from declaring a dividend on its shares of common stock until its surplus equals its stated capital, unless the bank has transferred to surplus no less than one-tenth of its net profits of the preceding two consecutive half-year periods (in the case of an annual dividend). The approval of the OCC is required if the total of all dividends declared by a national bank in any calendar year exceeds the total of its net profits for that year combined with its retained net profits for the preceding two years, less any required transfers to surplus. In addition, under FDICIA, the banks may not pay a dividend if, after paying the dividend, the bank would be undercapitalized. See "Capital Requirements" above.

Interstate Branching and Acquisitions. National banks are required by the National Bank Act to adhere to branch office banking laws applicable to state banks in the states in which they are located. Formerly, under the Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994, a bank’s ability to branch into a particular state was largely dependent upon whether the state “opted in” to de novo interstate branching. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, de novo interstate branching by national banks is permitted if, under the laws of the state where the branch is to be located, a state bank chartered in that state would be permitted to establish a branch. Further, a bank headquartered in one state is authorized to merge with a bank headquartered in another state, as long as neither of the states have opted out of such interstate merger authority, and subject to any state requirement that the target bank shall have been in existence and operating for a minimum period of time, not to exceed five years and certain deposit market-share limitations. Under current Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida law, The First may open branches or acquire existing banking operations throughout these states with the prior approval of the OCC. The Dodd-Frank Act permits out of state acquisitions by bank holding companies (subject to veto by new state law), interstate branching by banks if allowed by state law, interstate merging by banks, and de novo branching by national banks if allowed by state law. All branching in which The First may engage remains subject to regulatory approval and adherence to applicable legal and regulatory requirements.

Community Reinvestment Act. The Community Reinvestment Act (the “CRA”) requires depository institutions to assist in meeting the credit needs of their market areas consistent with safe and sound banking practice. Under the Community Reinvestment Act, each depository institution is required to help meet the credit needs of its market areas by, among other things, providing credit to low- and moderate-income individuals and communities. Depository institutions are periodically examined for compliance with the CRA and are assigned ratings. In order for a financial holding company to commence new activity permitted by the BHCA, each insured depository institution subsidiary of the financial holding company must have received a rating of at least “satisfactory” in its most recent examination under the CRA. These factors are considered in evaluating mergers, acquisitions, and applications to open a branch or facility.

USA Patriot Act. In 2001, the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA Patriot Act”) was signed into law. The USA Patriot Act broadened the application of anti-money laundering regulations to apply to additional types of financial institutions, such as broker-dealers, and strengthened the ability of the U.S. government to detect and prosecute international money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The principal provisions of Title III of the USA Patriot Act require that regulated financial institutions, including banks: (i) establish an anti-money laundering program that includes training and audit components; (ii) comply with regulations regarding the verification of the identity of any person seeking to open an account; (iii) take additional required precautions with non-U.S. owned accounts; and (iv) perform certain verification and certification of money laundering risk for their foreign correspondent banking relationships. The USA Patriot Act also expanded the conditions under which funds in a U.S. interbank account may be subject to forfeiture and increased the penalties for violation of anti-money laundering regulations. Failure of a financial institution to comply with the USA Patriot Act’s requirements could have serious legal and reputational consequences for the institution. The First has adopted policies, procedures and controls to address compliance with the requirements of the USA Patriot Act under the existing regulations and will continue to revise and update its policies, procedures and controls to reflect changes required by the USA Patriot Act and implementing regulations.

Office of Foreign Assets Control . The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) is responsible for administering and enforcing economic and trade sanctions against specified foreign parties, including countries and regimes, foreign individuals and other foreign organizations and entities. OFAC publishes lists of prohibited parties that are regularly consulted by our Bank in the conduct of its business in order to assure compliance. We are responsible for, among other things, blocking accounts of, and transactions with, prohibited parties identified by OFAC, avoiding unlicensed trade and financial transactions with such parties and reporting blocked transactions after their occurrence. Failure to comply with OFAC requirements could have serious legal, financial and reputational consequences for our Bank.

Consumer Protection Regulations. Interest and certain other charges collected or contracted for by The First are subject to state usury laws and certain federal laws concerning interest rates. The First’s loan operations are subject to certain federal laws applicable to credit transactions, such as the federal Truth-In-Lending Act, governing disclosures of credit terms to consumer borrowers; the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975, requiring financial institutions to provide information to enable the public and public officials to determine whether a financial institution is fulfilling its obligation to help meet the housing needs community it serves; the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin or other prohibited factors in extending credit; the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1978, governing the use and provision of information to credit reporting agencies; the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, concerning the manner in which consumer debts may be collected by collection agencies; and the rules and regulations of the various federal agencies charged with the responsibility of implementing such federal laws. The deposit operations of The First also are subject to the Right to Financial Privacy Act, which imposes a duty to maintain confidentiality of consumer financial records and prescribes procedures for complying with administrative subpoenas of financial records, and the Electronic Funds Transfer Act and Regulation E issued by the Federal Reserve Board to implement that Act, which governs automatic deposits to and withdrawals from deposit accounts and customers' rights and liabilities arising from the use of automated teller machines and other electronic banking services.

Other Regulatory Matters

Risk-retention rules. Under the final risk-retention rules, banks that sponsor the securitization of asset-backed securities and residential-mortgage backed securities are required to retain 5% of any loan they sell or securitize, except for mortgages that meet low-risk standards to be developed by regulators.

Changes to federal preemption. The Dodd-Frank Act created a new independent supervisory body, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”) that is housed within the Federal Reserve. The CFPB is the primary regulator for federal consumer financial statutes. State attorneys general are authorized to enforce new regulations issued by the CFPB. Although the application of most state consumer financial laws to The First will continue to be preempted under the National Bank Act, OCC determinations of such preemption are made on a case-by-case basis. As a result, it is possible that state consumer financial laws enacted in the future may be held to apply to our business activities. The cost of complying with any such additional laws could have a negative impact on our financial results.

Mortgage Rules. During 2013, the CFPB finalized a series of rules related to the extension of residential mortgage loans by banks. Among these rules are requirements that a bank make a good faith determination that a borrower has the ability to repay a mortgage loan prior to extending such credit, a requirement that certain mortgage loans provide for escrow payments, new appraisal requirements, and specific rules regarding how loan originators may be compensated and the servicing of residential mortgage loans. The implementation of these new rules began in January 2014.

Volcker Rule. In December 2013, the Federal Reserve, the FDIC, the OCC, the Commission, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued the “Prohibitions And Restrictions On Proprietary Trading And Certain Interests In, And Relationships With, Hedge Funds And Private Equity Funds,” commonly referred to as the Volcker Rule, which regulates and restricts investments which may be made by banks. The Volcker Rule was adopted to implement a portion of the Dodd-Frank Act and new Section 13 of the Bank Holding Company Act, which prohibits any banking entity from engaging in proprietary trading or from acquiring or retaining an ownership interest in, or sponsoring or having certain relationships with, a hedge fund or private equity fund (“covered funds”), subject to certain exemptions.

Debit Interchange Fees

Interchange fees, or “swipe” fees, are fees that merchants pay to credit card companies and card-issuing banks such as The First for processing electronic payment transactions on their behalf. The maximum permissible interchange fee that an issuer may receive for an electronic debit transaction is the sum of 21 cents per transaction and 5 basis points multiplied by the value of the transaction, subject to an upward adjustment of 1 cent if an issuer certifies that it has implemented policies and procedures reasonably designed to achieve the fraud-prevention standards set forth by the Federal Reserve.

In addition, the legislation prohibits card issuers and networks from entering into exclusive arrangements requiring that debit card transactions be processed on a single network or only two affiliated networks, and allows merchants to determine transaction routing. Due to the Company’s size, the Federal Reserve rule limiting debit interchange fees has not reduced our debit card interchange revenues.

Summary

The foregoing is a brief summary of certain statutes, rules and regulations affecting the Company and The First. It is not intended to be an exhaustive discussion of all statutes and regulations having an impact on the operations of such entities.

Increased regulation generally has resulted in increased legal and compliance expense.

Finally, additional bills may be introduced in the future in the U.S. Congress and state legislatures to alter the structure, regulation and competitive relationships of financial institutions. It cannot be predicted whether and in what form any of these proposals will be adopted or the extent to which the business of the Company and The First may be affected thereby.

Effect of Governmental Monetary and Fiscal Policies

The difference between the interest rate paid on deposits and other borrowings and the interest rate received on loans and securities comprises most of a bank’s earnings. In order to mitigate the interest rate risk inherent in the industry, the banking business is becoming increasingly dependent on the generation of fee and service charge revenue.

The earnings and growth of a bank are affected by both general economic conditions and the monetary and fiscal policy of the U.S. government and its agencies, particularly the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve sets national monetary policy such as seeking to curb inflation and combat recession. This is accomplished by its open-market operations in U.S. government securities, adjustments in the amount of reserves that financial institutions are required to maintain and adjustments to the discount rates on borrowings and target rates for federal funds transactions. The actions of the Federal Reserve in these areas influence the growth of bank loans, investments and deposits and also affect interest rates on loans and deposits. The nature and timing of any future changes in monetary policies and their potential impact on the Company cannot be predicted.