Paysera still could not make a profit in Q1/2025

As of Q1/2025, the market is represented by 30 MFOs, whose total portfolio has decreased by 300 million compared to the same period in 2024. This is only the effect of the exit of 2 MFOs from the market. The former MFO, Crystal, moved to the microbanking market with credit investments of more than 500 million GEL. MBC, whose portfolio was within 120 million GEL, also left the MFO.Lazika Capital, which, unlike the other pawnshops in the TOP-8, is also preparing for microbanking, is represented by a business portfolio.

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From the total number of border crossings, visits by Georgian resident visitors amounted to 482,100, which is 7.6 per cent less than the same period in 2024.The GeoStat reports that Georgian residents made 323,100 tourist-type visits abroad, which is 1.7 per cent lower year-on-year. The majority of visits, 47.1 per cent, were made by Georgian residents aged 31-50, while visits made by women constituted 44.9 per cent of all visits.Additionally, according to GeoStat, during the first quarter of 2025, the largest portion of visits - 36.6 per cent - was made to visit friends and relatives. Most visits were to Turkey and Armenia, with 184,900 and 70,200 visits, respectively.The average number of nights spent during visits in the first quarter of 2025 was 6.7, which is 4.0 per cent higher than the figure recorded in the first quarter of 2024 (6.4 nights). Repeat visits accounted for 98.6 per cent of all visits.Expenses incurred during visits in the reporting period amounted to GEL 481.5 million, which is 5.7 per cent higher than last year. The average expenditure per visit increased by 14.4 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2024, reaching GEL 998.8.

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According to the statement of TBC PLC CEO Vakhtang Butskiridze, they had a significant increase in the issuance of new cards, both in the Georgian and Uzbek markets.“I am pleased to report a strong start to 2025, which is particularly welcome given the uncertain global backdrop. In 1Q 2025, our operating income increased by 25% year-on-year and amounted to GEL 774 million, while our net profit reached GEL 319 million, up 7% year-on-year, delivering above 23% ROE.It was a very active quarter in building out our recent pipeline of new product launches. This included excellent growth in the issuance of our new Georgian daily banking product, TBC Card, with new card issuance almost tripling in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, in Uzbekistan, our Salom Card daily banking product and Osmon credit card have both hit the ground running, with over 275,000 cards issued by the end of the first quarter”, - Butskhrikidze said.According to him, TBC recently extended their SME digital banking offering to include unsecured loans as they look to develop the huge untapped opportunity within the SME sector in Uzbekistan.As we offer new products and improved customer experience, we in turn continue to see strong customer growth, with digital monthly active users (“MAU”) reaching 7.2 million at the Group level, up by 1.6 million, or 28%, year-on-year.As of Butskhrikidze, over one-third of their users engage with TBC’s digital platforms on a daily basis, which is an excellent indicator of user loyalty and engagement.The group will present the results to investors today at 2:00 PM BST.

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As of May 1, the volume of GEL in circulation is 6.4 billion (01.04.2025 – 6.3 billion; 01.05.2024 -5.7 billion).In March, there was a decrease of several million. In February, according to the NBG's "Monthly Review" (the month reviewed is one month ahead of the month of publication of the document), the volume of reserve money decreased by 47.7 million GEL (0.7%), to 7 billion, and the monetary base decreased by 112 million GEL.The NBG did not carry out transactions through foreign exchange auctions and the BMatch platform.With internal government conversions, the regulator's net sales amounted to 148 million lari. As a result, foreign exchange reserves decreased. The NBG could not fully cover the February deficit in March, but managed to replenish it by 102 million lari. As investment bankers say, the NBG purchased even more on BMatch in April.At the moment, according to the latest "Monthly Review", broad money (M3) decreased by 404.5 million lari in February. This was mainly due to a decrease in foreign currency deposits.

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Shukhratbek Kurbanov, who headed the National Interbank Payment Center (HUMO Payment System Operator), has been appointed as an advisor to the Chairman of the Management Board of TBC Bank in Uzbekistan on the development and servicing of the business segment payments.According to TBC Bank, this is another important step for the company in developing financial services for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Uzbekistan."We are pleased to welcome Shuhratbek Kurbanov to our team. His appointment is an important milestone in our company's strategy to create comprehensive financial solutions aimed at supporting small and medium-sized businesses in Uzbekistan. Shuhratbek's experience, deep understanding of the market and reputation will serve to develop our online banking services and stimulate entrepreneurship in the country," Nika Kurdiani, CEO TBC Uzbekistan."I am pleased to join the TBC Uzbekistan ecosystem, one of the fastest growing companies in Central Asia. Our mission is to create favorable conditions for the development of small and medium-sized businesses in the country through modern financial solutions, advanced technologies, and coordinated work of a team of professionals”, said Shuhratbek Kurbanov, Advisor to the Chairman of the Board of TBC Bank:The information is disseminated by the TBC Bank Uzbekistan 

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Lasha Abashidze was Davit Narmania's deputy during his term as mayor of Tbilisi. He also headed the administration during Giorgi Margvelashvili's presidency.It is worth noting that Davit Peradze has been the head of Georgian Railway since December 2017.

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Inflation remains close to the target level of 3%. As of April, annual inflation stood at 3.4%, while core inflation, which excludes the prices of food, energy products, and cigarettes - items characterized by significant price volatility - was 2.3%. This year, inflation dynamics are, on the one hand, driven by the increasing international food prices, which, for now, are partially mitigated by the relatively stable exchange rate of the lari against U.S. dollar driven by the global depreciation of the U.S. dollar. On the other hand, alongside international factors, the increase in food inflation has been partly attributed to the one-off rise in bread prices in the local market starting from March 2025. It is important to note that domestic economic fundamentals continue to support price stability. Specifically, improved production capacity partially offsets the price pressures stemming from strong aggregate demand. At the same time, long-term inflation expectations remain stable, as indicated by both the domestic (excluding the bread price effect) and service inflation measures, which remain close to the target level of 3%.Against the backdrop of global economic uncertainty, risks affecting inflation in both upward and downward directions have emerged. On the one hand, recent global developments highlight signs of economic fragmentation, which amplify stagflationary risks. This, in turn, creates risks for increased imported inflation in Georgia. On the other hand, as previously noted, the global weakening of the U.S. dollar index (DXY) has led to an improvement in the lari’s position relative to the U.S. dollar. This reduces the debt burden of dollar-denominated loans and, consequently, alleviates inflationary pressures through this channel. Meanwhile, in the context of declining global demand and expectations of increased oil supply, international oil prices are falling. This, along with the lari’s stable position against the U.S. dollar, has a disinflationary effect.Economic activity in Georgia remains robust in tandem with maintained price stability. Specifically, in the first quarter of 2025, real GDP growth averaged 9.3%. This is largely driven by structural changes in the economy, as reflected in the sustained strong contribution of productive sectors to GDP growth. At the same time, strong domestic demand also plays a key role in supporting high economic growth. This leaves demand-side price pressure as a noteworthy factor to consider.Considering increased global uncertainty, domestic tendencies and expectations in financial markets, the NBG's central scenario projects that inflation will temporarily exceed the target in 2025, stabilizing around 3% in the medium term. Due to the relatively slow pace of normalization of fundamental economic factors in the economy and strong current economic growth, real GDP growth in the central scenario for 2025 has been revised upwards from 5% to 6.7%, compared to the previous scenario. In the long term, it is expected to stabilize within its potential level of 5%.Given the increasing uncertainty, the Monetary Policy Committee has, on one hand, considered a high-inflation risk scenario, where the realization of fundamental factors would require a higher path for the policy rate compared to the central scenario. The high-inflation scenario is primarily based on the recent increase in uncertainty in international markets, which is fueled by tariff policy and the acceleration of economic fragmentation. The materialization of these risks, in turn, would disrupt supply chains and create a globally high-inflationary environment, which would subsequently have an impact on Georgia.On the other hand, the Monetary Policy Committee considered the low-inflation risk scenario, where the realization of fundamental factors would require a lower trajectory for the monetary policy rate compared to the central scenario. The increased global uncertainty and tariff policies may accelerate the diversification of trade worldwide, resulting in the reallocation of supply chains and regionalization. In this process, Georgia's role as the "Middle Corridor" country will be further strengthened. Moreover, under this scenario, the U.S. dollar will remain globally weakened, and against the backdrop of these tendencies, the appreciated exchange rate of the lari will exert downward pressure on overall inflation through the import inflation channel.Following discussions on all of the above, the Monetary Policy Committee has considered it optimal to maintain a cautious approach toward the further normalization of the policy rate and decided to keep the monetary policy rate unchanged at 8%. Upcoming decisions on the policy rate will depend on the analysis of risks and resulting updated macroeconomic forecast scenarios.The NBG will use all available instruments to maintain price stability. This means keeping the overall price level increase close to the 3% target over the medium term.The next meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee will be held on June 18, 2025.

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The position of party chairman became vacant following former chair Irakli Garibashvili’s announcement of his withdrawal from politics.The 9th GD Congress has also formally updated the composition of the Political Council for the Georgian Dream party.The Political Council is now comprised of: Bidzina Ivanishvili, Irakli Kobakhidze, Kakha Kaladze, Shalva Papuashvili, Mamuka Mdinaradze, Giorgi Volski, Tea Tsulukiani, Vakhtang Gomelauri, Irakli Chikovani, Maka Bochorishvili, Nikoloz Samkharadze, Mariam Kvrivishvili, Dimitri Samkharadze, Sulkhan Tamazashvili, and Nino Tsilosani.Irakli Kobakhidze had previously held the position of Chairman of the Georgian Dream Party between 2021 and 2024.

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