HoReCa Sector Struggles with Loan Repayments

According to the statistics of the National Bank of Georgia, as of 01.02.2026, all banks are profitable, except for Silk Bank and the sanctioned VTB. If we do not include the loss-making Digital Hash and Pave banks (Paysera’s profit is 654,000 GEL).Silk Bank's loss has increased to 2.1 million GEL (L/Y - 1.5 million), which is related to the cost of developing digital channels. The loss of Russian VTB has decreased, to 7 million (01/2025 - 12.1 million).Both microbanks are profitable (MBC - 0.4 million; Crystal - 2.4 million).Among banks with large assets, Arab capital's "Tera", with a profit of 3 million, overtook German "ProCredit" (2.8 million). Georgian "Cartu" (1.09 million) lagged behind Kazakh "Halyk Bank" (1.95 million) and even Microbank.

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At the beginning of the 2025/2026 academic year, 58.6 thousand students were enrolled in Georgian higher education institutions, out of them 31.5 thousand in state universities and 27.0 thousand in private universities. Student admissions increased by 8.0 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.The number of students in Georgian higher education institutions amounted to 195.4 thousand, which is 4.1 percent more compared to the previous academic year. 55.3 percent of the total number of students study in state higher education institutions and 44.7 percent in private institutions. 52.1 percent of students are women, and 47.9 percent are men.The number of students in Georgian higher education institutions amounted to 195.4 thousand, which is 4.1 percent more compared to the previous academic year. 55.3 percent of the total number of students study in state higher education institutions and 44.7 percent in private institutions. 52.1 percent of students are women, and 47.9 percent are men.In 2025, 32.5 thousand students graduated from higher education institutions, which is 9.9 percent more compared to the previous year. 58.8 percent of the graduates are women and 41.2 percent are men. The number of graduates in state higher education institutions is 12.7 percent higher than the number of graduates in private universities.The number of foreign students in Georgian higher education institutions amounted to 44.4 thousand, which is 19.7 percent higher than the previous year. The number of professors in higher education institutions is 12.2 thousand, which is 6.2 percent higher than the same indicator of the previous year.In 2025, 720 doctoral students were admitted to the universities, which is 2.9 percent higher than the previous year. At the same time, the number of doctoral students increased by 0.1 percent and amounted to 3 025.Compared to the previous year, the number of persons who completed their work for doctoral degrees has decreased by 16.0 percent and amounted to 368. 

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In 2025, 19.7 thousand students were admitted, 53.7% of whom are women and 46.3% men. Compared to 2024, student admissions have increased by 15.3%.As for the data by regions, the highest number of students was admitted in the city of Tbilisi (40.1%), followed by Adjara AR (19.3%), Imereti (11.5%), Kvemo Kartli (10.0%), Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti (7.4%), Kakheti (4.1%).In 2025, 238 students were admitted with special educational needs, 35.7% of whom are women and 64.3% men. As for the data by regions, Tbilisi has the leading position with the number of admitted students (50.4%).In 2025, the number of graduates was 10.5 thousand, out of which 47.1% were women and 52.9% - men. Most of them come from Services (23.1%), Engineering, Manufacturing, Construction (21.4%), and Business, Administration and Law (15.0%) programs. 

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Political Accents Amidst the Western world’s support for the US and Israeli military campaign against the Iranian regime, the Georgian government’s position is notably in solidarity with Tehran. The statement emphasizes that the ongoing hostilities in Iran have claimed the lives of “the greatest number of people, including the Supreme Leader and other political leaders.”The government is trying to maintain diplomatic balance while simultaneously expressing condolences to the “friendly Jewish people” over the deaths of civilians. Tbilisi also expresses its full solidarity with the Gulf Arab states, with which Georgia has a “distinguished partnership,” although condolences to the Iranian leadership remain a central part of the statement.The Georgian government calls on the parties to replace hostilities with “diplomacy and political dialogue.” However, in the context of the existential crisis in the region, Tbilisi’s call seems more like an attempt to maintain neutrality than an effective geopolitical move.At the same time, the government says it will take “all necessary measures” to protect the safety of Georgian citizens in the region.

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In January of this year, the Agency received 388 consumer applications and handled 990 hotline calls, marking a 92% increase in applications compared to the previous year.During the reporting period, the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency (GCCA) identified 51 violations of consumer group rights in 89 cases. Due to non-compliance with obligations imposed by the GCCA, 24 traders were fined in 44 cases, with total penalties amounting to 47 925 GEL. For consumer protection, 30 commitment agreements were signed in 37 cases, where traders committed to modifying their internal business policies and restoring the rights of affected consumers who suffered due to unfair business practices.According to the reporting period, 65% of submitted applications concerned online transactions, while 35% related to in-person purchases. From a regional perspective, Tbilisi accounted for the largest share of applications 75%, followed by Adjara 6%, Imereti 5%, Kvemo Kartli 3% , Kakheti 3%, Samegrelo Zemo-Svaneti 3%, etc.According to the data for the first two months of the current year, the demand for a refund is 122, the repair or replacement of defective items is 104, 93 for restoring the right to a defective service, 21 applications related to the delivery of goods within the legally established timeframe, and the rest is 48. According to the statistics, 65% of the applications related to the wholesale and retail sector, followed by transport and warehousing with 13%, the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector accounted for 2%, while the remaining 17% concerned other types of economic activities.

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As the minister explained, at the first stage, those families will be verified, in whose case there is a high probability that they will no longer meet the conditions for receiving benefits. One of the main indicators that will serve as the basis for verifying a family is the receipt of an income of more than 2,000 GEL per month over the past three months.Mikheil Sarjveladze emphasized that an income of 2,000 GEL does not mean the automatic cancellation of the status, but rather it is a signal to the ministry to reassess the family's economic situation.The state uses dozens of criteria to verify the social situation. According to the minister, the system is complex and only one item or income does not create the final picture.“Dozens of criteria are involved in this system, including the volume of utility bills and other factors. In some cases, maintaining the status is determined by a health problem or the status of a disabled person. Overall, the picture that is created is the basis for the decision. If the family has positive dynamics and its situation has improved, it should naturally no longer remain in the database,” Sarjveladze said.The head of the department explained that the ministry’s task is not to save the budget. According to him, the main goal of the reform is to distribute state resources as efficiently as possible and to spend every tetri on supporting those people for whom it is critically important.According to the minister, the correct grouping will allow the state to direct more opportunities and resources to those who are actually in a difficult financial and economic situation.We would like to remind you that the Ministry of Health announced the decision to actively verify the database of socially vulnerable families a few days ago.

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Compared to January 2025, the DPPI increased by 5.0 percent. The prices for mining and quarrying decreased by 5.1 percent and for manufactured products prices increased by 6.0 percent, for electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning by 2.2 percent and the prices for water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation services by 3.1 percent.

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The prices for mining and quarrying increased by 7.3 percent compared to December 2025, resulting in a 0.55 percentage point contribution to the overall monthly PPI change. In the same period, the prices for manufactured products increased by 0.8 percent, contributing 0.59 percentage points to the monthly index change. Within the group, a noteworthy price increase was registered for food products (0.9 percent) and basic metals (3.4 percent). Besides, the prices increased for electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning by 0.8 percent, contributing 0.08 percentage points to the monthly index change.The annual PPI rate was mainly affected by price changes for the following products: Mining and quarrying: the prices were 36.4 percent higher, contributing 2.25 percentage points to the overall annual index change. Within the group, the prices were higher for the subgroup of metal ores (51.4 percent); Manufactured products: the prices increased by 4.7 percent, contributing 3.73 percentage points to the overall annual index increase. There was a notable increase in the prices for food products (11.8 percent) and basic metals (8.2 percent); Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning: the annual price increase amounted to 3.0 percent, which contributed 0.32 percentage points to the annual index change; Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation services: the annual price increase amounted to 5.6 percent, which contributed 0.17 percentage points to the annual index growth.

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