Finance

Over 68% of SME loans are in foreign currency

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Tbilisi (GBC) - In the 32 billion-GEL portfolio of resident legal entities, foreign currency loans have not yet exceeded 60%. The dollarization ratio is 65.6%.

Including 58% in lending to large businesses and over 68% to SMEs (L/m - 58.2%; 68%).

The share of foreign currency-denominated loans in retail does not exceed 21%, although the dollarization ratio increased by 0.1 percentage points in the last reporting month. Total bank lending is 72.7 billion GEL (+2.4%m.m; +15%Y.Y).

As the NBG has announced, the next restriction on foreign currency lending (the limit is increasing to GEL 1 million from July 1) should reduce annual issuance by $200 million. The previous increase (the limit was raised to GEL 750,000 from 09/2025) was $150 million, while the previous ones (when the limit was first increased to GEL 400,000 and then to GEL 500,000) were calculated on a decrease of $180,000,000 and $100 million, respectively.

The NBG explains that the easing of the reserve requirement on funds attracted in foreign currency (from 25% to 20%), which will free up $250 million of capital for the banking sector, will not affect loans. Potentially, it will be transferred to deposits, but given the high deposit margins, it does not pose a risk of slowing the pace of larization.

Moreover, the decision to increase the reserve requirement to 25% was temporary in nature to contain pre-election dollarization and its validity period was already excessively extended.

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Banks' problem mortgages have decreased

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QR code becomes mandatory on alcoholic beverage bottles

According to Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture Zurab Ezugbaia, the law introduces a new term - “labeling of alcoholic beverages”. This refers to the placement of a QR code issued by the National Wine Agency on the label, container or packaging of the beverage.The changes cover several areas: Production quotas: The definition of a “small-sized cellar” is changing - the upper limit of annual production is reduced from 40,000 liters to 25,000 liters. Quality control: Organoleptic (taste) testing of all categories of wine becomes mandatory, whether it is intended for the local market or for export (this requirement will not apply only to natural wines produced in small wineries). Labeling obligation: The National Wine Agency will carry out the labeling of all certified alcoholic beverages intended for sale. Specific deadlines for the implementation of the reform have already been set. The Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture must approve the rules and form of labeling by November 1, 2026, and the Government of Georgia must determine the fee for this service by February 1, 2027.According to the authors of the initiative, this step will help protect Georgian alcoholic beverages from counterfeiting and strengthen trust in local products in both domestic and international markets.

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Tegeta Holding Places EUR 11 MLN in bonds at record low interest rate

Due to high demand from investors, the company was able to raise 11 million Euros instead of the initially planned 7.5 million Euros. The coupon rate was set at 6.25%, which is the lowest rate for euro-denominated bonds on the Georgian capital market in the last five years. With this move, the company refinanced the securities issued in 2024 and improved the interest rate by 50 basis points.According to Otar Sharikadze, Director of TBC Capital, the higher-than-planned issue confirms high confidence in the company. According to him, Tegeta is one of the most active issuers on the market, with which 11 issues totaling up to 610 million GEL were carried out in partnership.In turn, Ekaterine Kavtaradze, Executive Director of Tegeta Holding, noted that the record-low rate is a recognition of the vision of stable business development. TBC Capital maintains its leading position in the local market with an 84% share this year.

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Banks' problem mortgages have decreased

Annual growth is up to 13% as of Q1/2026. At the beginning of the year, it was up to 12%. For the same period last year, it was up to 11%.The share of problem mortgages in banks' portfolios has decreased, in GEL and USD, respectively, to 1.1% and 1.4%. In EUR, the problem coefficient has decreased to 2.1%.According to the NBG’s statistics, as of Q1/2026, banks' portfolios have 100 million problem mortgages in GEL and 35.8 million GEL equivalent in USD.

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Commercial banks lost GEL 40 MLN through Foreign Exchange Trade

The decrease was noted with 2 systemic banks, BOG/TBC. Almost all banks in the TOP 10 have decreased their profits. There are a few exceptions.Liberty (Q1/2025 - 6.6 million), Basisbank (Q1/2025 - 4.6 million), which already owns Liberty's entire assets, Cartu (Q1/2025 -1.4 million) and Azerbaijani capital, Pasha (Q1/2025 -0.3 million) have increased.

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Georgia’s electricity consumption to grow by 3.4% on average over the...

Economic Dynamics and ConsumptionAccording to the document, electricity consumption in the country generally follows the growth rate of GDP, although there are exceptions: 2025: Against the backdrop of 7.5% economic growth, consumption increased by only 3.5% 2024: With a GDP growth of 9.7%, energy consumption growth amounted to 6% State support and investmentsThe study draws attention to the fact that 94% of power plants built in Georgia in recent years were implemented through state incentive mechanisms. According to analysts, the introduction of the Contract for Difference (CFD) mechanism has significantly increased investor interest in the sector.Despite the new mechanisms, the largest capacity, 36 MW, was built in the country under the terms of a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).Generation structureAs of today, the total installed capacity of the Georgian power system is approximately 4,800 MW. The generation sources are distributed as follows: Hydroelectric power plants (HPPs): 3,500 MW Thermal power plants: 1,200 MW Renewable energy (solar and wind): up to 50 MW According to Galt & Taggart, the share of solar and wind power plants in the overall portfolio is still critically low, indicating untapped potential in this area in the context of regional energy security.

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The trade deficit decreased to 40%

The value of export increased by 21.1 percent reaching USD 2,44 billion, while the import decreased by 4.9 percent and amounted to USD 5.69 billion.The trade deficit equaled USD 3,25 billion and its share in trade turnover constituted 40%.

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Foreign exchange reserves reach $6.5 billion

According to the National Bank of Georgia, there is an increase of 154 million in April. The regulator announces net foreign exchange purchases of up to $500 million in Q1/2026, which became possible against the background of a favorable macroeconomic environment.The NBG's April activity and trading volume will be announced on May 25. March saw net sales of $16.2 million. Net purchases in February-January exceeded half a billion dollars.

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Georgia’s Pension Fund Assets Surpass GEL 9 Billion

Pension portfolios showed strong growth in April after a volatile March. The fund said that easing tensions in the Middle East, in particular a ceasefire between the US and Iran, and better-than-expected quarterly results from major technology companies, had a positive impact on investor sentiment.The most profitable portfolio in April was the dynamic portfolio (with a high share of equities), which increased by 5.12%. During the same period, the balanced portfolio increased by 3.79%, and the conservative portfolio - by 2.25%.Since the beginning of the year (YTD), all three portfolios are in the positive range: Dynamic: 6.35% Balanced: 5.35% Conservative: 4.57% “Optimism related to artificial intelligence and the growth of the semiconductor sector had a particular impact on those portfolios with a high share of international equities,” the fund said.According to the fund, the number of participants in the pension scheme reached 1.735 million people. As of April 30, 2026, 31,286 individuals have already benefited from the accumulated pension, to whom a total of GEL 153.2 million has been issued.The total investment income received since the foundation of the fund (since August 2023) is GEL 2.6 billion. During the same period, the annualized return of the dynamic portfolio reached 15%, making it the highest-yielding portfolio.

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Tegeta Holding Places EUR 11 MLN in bonds at record low interest rate

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