First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. Receives Approval to Acquire Premier Bancshares, Inc.

HAMMOND, LA, May 19, 2017 –  First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: FGBI) ("First Guaranty") has received official approval to acquire Premier Bancshares, Inc. ("Premier"), and its wholly owned subsidiary Synergy Bank S.S.B., ("Synergy Bank").  On May 10, 2017, Premier stockholders voted to approve the acquisition and on May 15, 2017, the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Commission announced their formal approval of the purchase.

Both parties have been anxiously awaiting the formal consent and have begun working diligently to make this transition seamless for the staff and customers alike.  The acquisition will put First Guaranty into a high growth market that provides an opportunity for First Guaranty to accelerate its loan and product growth. Synergy Bank's expertise in Small Business Administration (SBA) lending will be used to complement and expand First Guaranty's current lending efforts.

"This formal regulatory approval opens the door for fantastic opportunities for First Guaranty for growth and earnings both in Louisiana and Texas.  It will also allow us to provide more banking services to all of our customers," said Alton Lewis, President and Chief Executive Officer of First Guaranty.

"Merging with FGB will provide us additional resources to expand all our products and services which will allow us to be more competitive. FGB offers the most cutting edge banking technology in the market place. We are looking forward to the merger and the opportunity to grow with the expertise of the FGB staff and their history of success since 1934," stated Doug Sanders, President and CEO of Synergy Bank.

ABOUT FIRST GUARANTY BANCSHARES, INC.

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. is the holding company for First Guaranty Bank, a Louisiana state-chartered bank.  Founded in 1934, First Guaranty Bank offers a wide range of financial services and focuses on building client relationships and providing exceptional customer service.  First Guaranty Bank currently operates twenty-one branches in Louisiana; soon to be twenty-two as a new branch is being constructed in Bossier City.  First Guaranty's common stock trades on the NASDAQ under the symbol FGBI.

For additional information, visit First Guaranty Bank's website at www.fgb.net.

ABOUT PREMIER BANCSHARES, INC.

Premier Bancshares, Inc. is the holding company for Synergy Bank S.S.B., a Texas state-chartered savings bank.  Synergy Bank offers a wide range of financial services and operates five branches in Texas, one in McKinney, Garland, Denton, Fort Worth, and Waco.

For additional information, visit Synergy Bank's website at www.synergybank.com.

Certain statements contained herein are "forward looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward looking statements may be identified by reference to a future period or periods, or by the use of forward looking terminology, such as "may," "will," "believe," "expect," "estimate," "anticipate," "continue," or similar terms or variations on those terms, or the negative of those terms. Forward looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, as described in our SEC filings, including, but not limited to, those related to the real estate and economic environment, particularly in the market areas in which First Guaranty operates, competitive products and pricing, fiscal and monetary policies of the U.S. Government, changes in government regulations affecting financial institutions, including regulatory fees and capital requirements, changes in prevailing interest rates, acquisitions and the integration of acquired businesses, credit risk management, asset-liability management, the financial and securities markets and the availability of and costs associated with sources of liquidity.