NBG Launches Second Sustainable Finance Roadmap

According to Creditinfo, as of March 1, active loan contracts worth 49.55 billion GEL have been signed with commercial bank clients (L/Y – GEL 39.8 billion)The portfolio of leasing companies is within 591 million GEL (L/Y – GEL 501 million) within 0.5 billion GEL.As you know, Creditinfo only records loans up to 10 million GEL. The limit was increased at the end of 2022. Previously, it included loans of 3 million.As of 01.03.2025, 90,047 loans of 931 million GEL from 50,055 borrowers of the bank are in 1-year arrears (L/Y - 840 million);A portfolio of GEL 595 million is in 2/3 years arrears (L/Y - GEL 555 million).The problem loan portfolio of banks has increased, unlike previous years (2024, 2023). In addition, the annual growth rate of lending has increased. As of 02/2025, it is 17.9% (01.03.2024: + 17.35%Y.Y).The CreditInfo database also includes loans issued based on income received through remittances.

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As of February 1, the bank is the leader with assets of 38 billion. It is No. 2 in lending, after TBC. It is also the second in deposits of legal entities.It is the market leader in total and including deposits of individuals.Bank of Georgia has more profit than all banks. With a net profit of up to 126.2 million GEL in January (01/2024 – 121.4 million), with a 53% share (01/2024 – 51.7%) it leads among 14 profitable banks, the total indicator of which is 251.7 million GEL (01/2024 – the aggregate of 12 profitable banks - 238.066 million).

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As of 01.02.2025, it has a market share of 38.4% (01.02.2024 – 39.3%).The sector's large-asset (GEL 36.9 billion) systemic bank is the leader in deposits of legal entities. At the end of January, it has a portfolio of 8.3 billion GEL (01/2024 – 8.5 billion GEL). It is ranked second in terms of total (19.6 billion) and retail deposits (11.3 billion) (01/2024 – 18.1 billion, 9.6 billion).TBC is second in terms of Return on Assets. As of 01.02.2025, the bank's ROE (annualized) is 20% (01.02.2024 – 22.1%).

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As of the document, the United Kingdom reaching USD 222.6 million in Q4 2024 (60.6 percent) was the major foreign direct investor country. Malta was the second with USD 67.9 million (18.5 percent) followed by the Netherlands with USD 36.3 (9.9 percent).The largest share of FDI was registered in the financial and insurance activities sector, reaching USD 314.9 million (85.7 percent) in Q4 2024. Real estate activities sector was the second with USD 65.8 million (17.9 percent), followed by the manufacturing sector with USD 23.1 million (6.3 percent).

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As for the foreign direct investments by components, the equity capital totaling USD 483.7 million, 60.1% down than the adjusted data of the previous year and the volume of reinvestment totaling USD 1 billion 170 million, 26.4% down than the adjusted data of the previous year.The share of the three largest investor countries in the total volume of foreign direct investment, in 2024 (preliminary data), amounted to 58.2%.The shares of major foreign direct investor countries in FDI stand as follows: The United Kingdom (33.6 percent), Malta (13.2 percent) and Netherlands (11.4 percent).The share of three major economic sectors in FDI reached 63.9 percent in 2024. The largest share of FDI was registered in the financial and insurance activities sector, totaling USD 526.5 million (39.5 percent), manufacturing was the second with USD 170.2 million (12.8 percent), followed by real estate activities sector with USD 155.3 million (11.6 percent).

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Lion Finance Group (BGEO LN) shares closed at GBP 54.40/share (+2.84% w/w and +12.98% m/m). More than 307k shares traded in the range of GBP 50.50 - 54.70/share. Average daily traded volume was 51k in the last 4 weeks. The volume of BGEO shares traded was at 0.69% of its capitalization.TBC Bank Group (TBCG LN) closed the week at GBP 44.00/share (+2.33% w/w and +24.29% m/m). More than 496k shares changed hands in the range of GBP 41.10 - 44.25/share. Average daily traded volume was 149k in the last 4 weeks. The volume of TBCG shares traded was at 0.88% of its capitalization.Georgia Capital (CGEO LN) shares closed at GBP 14.94/share (+3.46% w/w and +24.50% m/m). More than 584k shares traded in the range of GBP 14.42 - 15.78/share. Average daily traded volume was 76k in the last 4 weeks. The volume of CGEO shares traded was at 1.48% of its capitalization. 

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In her speech, Turnava highlighted the NBG's ongoing efforts to enhance consumer protection standards and foster a competitive financial environment. She emphasized that the effective implementation of legislative innovations and regulations requires continuous consultation and close cooperation with financial sector representatives. Accordingly, regulatory changes in consumer protection are regularly introduced in response to sectoral challenges and evolving consumer needs.“In 2024, like in previous years, the National Bank of Georgia actively worked to further improve the customer-focused environment in the financial sector, and a number of important activities/changes were implemented in this regard, including amendments made to the regulation on protecting consumer rights. Additional regulatory requirements extended to payment service providers, including detailed procedures for consumer complaints and mandatory reporting to the NBG, effective April 15, 2024.“We have also reinforced market conduct supervision, incorporating risk-based oversight to foster a regulatory environment that prioritizes consumer protection and ensures sector-wide compliance. To this end, we have developed a draft Market Conduct Supervision Strategy, which we will soon present to the public and hope to see adopted this year,” noted the NBG Governor.Turnava also underscored the importance of raising public awareness and sharing key updates through events like Consumer Protection Week."In recent years, the number of customers reaching out to the National Bank of Georgia has steadily increased, further demonstrating the positive impact of our efforts to enhance consumer awareness. In late 2023, the National Bank of Georgia established a Dispute Resolution Commission, which addresses disputes related to payment services, offering consumers a fast, effective, and free resolution mechanism. In 2024, the Commission reviewed approximately 90 disputes between consumers and payment service providers, including banks. Remarkably, 85% of these cases were resolved in favor of consumers, with a total of 300,000 GEL paid to consumers by the service providers," - said Natia Turnava.A major focus of Consumer Protection Week is enhancing accessibility for consumers with disabilities. Six regulatory agencies presented specially developed materials aimed at empowering individuals with disabilities and ensuring equal access to consumer rights information."One of today's key topics is ensuring that persons with disabilities have access to information about their rights. To support this, the National Bank of Georgia has developed a concise booklet that provides essential information to help users better understand their rights and responsibilities. It is worth noting that the financial sector is actively working to create and enhance an inclusive environment for persons with disabilities. The National Bank of Georgia fully supports this process and remains committed to further refining and advancing these efforts in the future," - said Natia Turnava.The opening event was also attended by Ekaterine Galdava, Vice Governor of the NBG. The Third International Consumer Protection Week will take place from March 10-15 in Tbilisi, Akhalkalaki, Zugdidi, and Batumi.Participants include representatives of regulatory agencies, members of parliament, central and regional government officials, international organizations, the Georgian Union of the Deaf, the Union of the Blind, and representatives from the business, academic, and non-governmental sectors. The week’s objective is to strengthen consumer rights protection mechanisms in Georgia.

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“The amendments include a reduction in the maximum prepayment commission for loan/credit refinancing from another financial organization. For individuals and legal entities with total liabilities of up to two million GEL, the commission will decrease from the current 2% to 0.5%.These changes will lower the cost of transferring liabilities between financial organizations, fostering increased competition and offering more favorable conditions for consumers.Notably, for the first time, the amendments establish an upper limit of 2% for the prepayment commission on documentary operations (e.g., letters of credit, documentary collections, bank guarantees, acceptances). Previously, this area had not been regulated, leading to cases where higher commissions were imposed. In response, the NBG has deemed it necessary to address this gap in consumer protection.The National Bank of Georgia remains committed to protecting consumers’ and investors’ rights in the financial sector and promoting competition. These changes will strengthen the competitive environment, which plays a key role in safeguarding consumer rights.Moving forward, the National Bank will continue enhancing mechanisms to promote competition and ensure consumer protection,” the NBG states.

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