Real Estate Markets in Tbilisi and Batumi Are Growing: Foreign Buyer Activity Increased in August

The highest increases were recorded in Imereti, Racha, and Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti—15.1%, 13%, and 12.8%, respectively.In Imereti, the average price for 4-star hotels hovered around 250 GEL, while the average for family-run guesthouses and 3-star hotels was around 150 GEL.In Racha, prices for 3- and 4-star hotels were in the 250 GEL range, while rates at family-run guesthouses ranged from 100 to 150 GEL.As for Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti, the price of 4-star hotels exceeded 300 GEL, the average price for 3-star hotels was 200 GEL, and the average rate at family-run guesthouses was slightly above 100 GEL. In August 2026, the average price for family-run hotels was 134 GEL; for 3-star hotels, it was 203 GEL; and for 4-star hotels, it was 298 GEL.During the same period, the average price for 5-star hotels in Georgia was 598 GEL. The highest average prices were recorded in Guria (1,081 GEL), Kakheti (684 GEL), and Tbilisi (668 GEL).The study is published by PMCG. The analysis covers a stratified sample of 568 hotels (categorized as 3, 4, and 5-star) and 371 family-run hotels registered on Booking.com. Average prices are calculated based on the hotels available during the current month.

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The meeting took place on the sidelines of the Regional Central Bank Governors' Roundtable held in Tbilisi.During the meeting, the parties discussed opportunities to further deepen cooperation between the National Bank of Georgia and J.P. Morgan. They also reviewed the regional macroeconomic environment and ongoing trends within the financial sector.Particular attention was given to the Regional Central Bank Governors' Roundtable, co-hosted by the National Bank of Georgia and J.P. Morgan. The participants underscored the importance of this inaugural regional event, which served as a unique platform for central bank leadership and international financial community to exchange insights and address mutual priorities.

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During the meeting, the parties discussed prospects for further deepening cooperation in the financial sector between Georgia and China. Particular emphasis was placed on cooperation in developing financial services and exploring opportunities to strengthen ties between the commercial banks of the two countries.It was noted that, against the backdrop of growing trade and economic relations between Georgia and China, the development of corresponding financial infrastructure and services is particularly important for further strengthening economic ties between the two countries.The parties also discussed their mutual interest in strengthening cooperation between Georgian and Chinese commercial banks. It was highlighted that active collaboration between Chinese financial institutions and Georgian commercial banks, including in the area of correspondent banking relations, is already underway. Both sides expressed readiness to further deepen this cooperation.Nino Jeladze emphasized that the National Bank of Georgia places great importance on strengthening cooperation with international financial institutions and creating new opportunities for the Georgian financial sector."Trade and economic relations between Georgia and China are growing; therefore, it is vital that this process is accompanied by the strengthening of financial ties and the development of modern financial services. The meetings held within the framework of CIFIT present a valuable opportunity for representatives of the Georgian and Chinese financial sectors to discuss specific areas of cooperation," stated Nino Jeladze.During her visit to China for CIFIT 2026, the NBG Vice Governor also met with Wang Hongbo, Chairman of the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS), to discuss current and future cooperation. The parties also reviewed progress in cooperation among the Georgian financial sector, the National Bank of Georgia, and CIPS.

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Compared to July 2026, prices rose by 4.6% in the mining and quarrying group, contributing 0.34 percentage points to the change in the overall index. During the same period, prices decreased in the manufacturing group (-0.2%), contributing -0.15 percentage points to the overall index change. Additionally, a 6.8% price increase was recorded in the electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning group, which contributed 0.67 percentage points to the total monthly index change.According to Geostat data, the formation of the index over the 12-month period was primarily influenced by price changes in the following products: Mining and quarrying: prices increased by 20.1%, contributing 1.34 percentage points to the change in the overall index. Within this group, a notable price increase occurred in metal ores (22.9%); Manufactured products: prices rose by 5.1%, contributing 4.02 percentage points to the overall index's growth. Price increases were observed in food products (5.7%) and basic metals (10.1%); Electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning: prices increased by 2.6%, contributing 0.28 percentage points to the annual change in the overall index; Water supply, sewerage, waste management, and remediation services: prices increased by 6.3%, contributing 0.2 percentage points to the overall index.

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In January–August 2026, the top ten countries accounted for 65% of Georgia's total domestic exports. The largest export partners in this regard are: China – $529.1 million Russia – $468.3 million Turkey – $297.3 million Oil and oil products topped the list of domestic exports in January–August 2026 with a value of $649.1 million, representing 19.8% of total domestic exports. Precious metal ores and concentrates rank second with $403.1 million (12.3% of total domestic exports), while ferroalloys occupy third place with $219 million (6.7% of total domestic exports).

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In January–August 2026, the ten largest export partner countries accounted for 68.8% of Georgia's total exports. The top three export destinations were as follows: Kyrgyzstan – $577.6 million China – $543.7 million Russia – $500.7 million According to Geostat data, the ten largest import partners accounted for 70.2% of Georgia's total imports in January–August 2026. The top three are: Turkey – $1.9 billion Russia – $1.5 billion USA – $1.5 billion In January–August 2026, the ten largest trading partners accounted for 65.7% of Georgia's total foreign trade turnover. The country's largest trading partners are: Turkey – $2.24 billion China – $2 billion Russia – $2 billion According to Geostat data, passenger cars took first place among the top ten export commodity groups in January–August 2026, with a value of $1.34 billion, representing 24.9% of total exports. Oil and petroleum products rank second with $688.9 million (12.7% of total exports), while precious metal ores and concentrates take third place with $403.1 million (7.4%).The largest import commodity group in January–August 2026 consisted of passenger cars, with imports totaling $2.36 billion, or 18.9% of total imports. Oil and petroleum products rank second with $1.16 billion (9.3% of imports), while medicinal products take third place with $468.4 million (3.7% of imports).

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Tbilisi, September 21, 2026 - Visa (NYSE: V), a world leader in digital payments, announced an enhanced version of A2A Protect, delivering real-time risk insights that help banks stop account-to-account fraud before money leaves customer accounts. The expanded solution introduces a new unified fraud score—Visa’s first in-market integration of Featurespace technology—giving financial institutions faster, clearer signals to detect more fraud while reducing unnecessary alerts.As account-to-account (A2A) payments accelerate globally, A2A transactions are projected to surpass 5.8 trillion by 2028, a 160% increase from 2024[1]. A2A Protect leverages advanced AI and sophisticated transfer learning and gives banks immediate access to critical global risk insights on A2A transactions, without waiting months for models to develop intelligence from a bank’s own transaction data, and without having to wait for other banks to join a consortium, delivering results and value from day one. Banks that opt in can incorporate additional network-level signals to enhance detection of emerging threats operating across the ecosystem.“Fraudsters move fast across payment types, and financial institutions need risk insights just as quickly, without slowing down legitimate payments”, said Walter Lironi, Senior Vice President, Head of Value-Added Services, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA), Visa. “A2A Protect combines Visa’s network expertise with Featurespace’s technology to deliver a powerful new layer of protection that helps financial institutions detect more fraud, earlier.For financial institutions that opt into network-level intelligence sharing, A2A Protect highlights emerging scam hotspots and coordinated fraud activity – insights that may be difficult for individual financial institutions to detect alone, and that help the wider ecosystem respond faster to new threats. This gives financial institutions a more complete and early view of risk, helping to identify scams before authorization.A2A Protect integrates with financial institutions’ current systems through a single API, reducing implementation time and complexity. Each alert includes a plain language explanation of why a transaction was flagged, helping fraud teams act quickly and confidently without disrupting genuine customers.For more information on how Visa works to prevent fraud across the ecosystem, visit Visa.com/security.About Visa Inc.Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating payments transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at Visa.com.ge.

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It is noteworthy that this was the first time an event of this format was held in the region in partnership with J.P. Morgan.Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze opened the meeting. In his address, the Head of Government emphasized the significance of a gathering of this scale and discussed the country's economic growth figures and the development dynamics of the financial sector. He also highlighted the financial sector's role in economic progress and the growing international recognition of Georgian financial institutions.He stated that the Government of Georgia continues to work on developing capital markets and creating an increasingly competitive environment for investment.A key topic of the meeting was the regional macroeconomic environment and the challenges facing monetary policy. Participants discussed global economic shifts and shared experiences regarding the maintenance of price and financial stability. Dedicated sessions focused on asset and international reserve management amidst geopolitical challenges, as well as prospects for developing local capital markets.The event aims to deepen cooperation among the region's central banks, facilitate the exchange of experience, and foster effective responses to shared challenges."It is highly significant that we are hosting the first event of this kind in the region. It is particularly gratifying to see so many colleagues in Tbilisi representing nearly 15 central banks, development organizations, and the financial sector. Such meetings are valuable not only because they allow us to exchange views on pressing issues that shape our economies' development, but also because they create opportunities for open dialogue, mutual learning, and the strengthening of ties between our institutions," noted Natia Turnava, Governor of the National Bank of Georgia. The event was attended by governors, deputy governors, and other high-ranking officials from the central banks of up to 15 countries, including Hungary, Poland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Armenia, and Kazakhstan, as well as representatives from J.P. Morgan, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank.

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