BIC Bulletin W12/2026
📁 Banking sector & finance
🔹 Foreign-currency bank deposits: +13.8% year-on-year
As of 30 September, foreign-currency deposits held in Georgian banks amounted to the equivalent of GEL 33.57bn – up 13.8% year-on-year, the National Bank of Georgia reported. Within foreign-currency holdings, 79% was in US dollars and 19.2% in euros. Lari deposits of legal entities also rose 12.8% to GEL 21.54bn, while the same group's foreign-currency deposits recorded the strongest growth at +17.7%. Retail deposits rose 14% in lari and 11.8% in foreign currency. The data signal persistently high liquidity in Georgia's banking sector alongside robust saving behaviour in both the retail and corporate segments.
📁 Real estate & construction
🔹 Batumi residential market: +57% in Q3
The volume of Batumi's residential real estate market reached USD 300m in the third quarter – up 57% year-on-year, Colliers Georgia reports. In parallel, Galt & Taggart assesses the market as balanced: annual demand is around 2,300 new residential units, driven by natural population growth, internal migration within Adjara and the influx of so-called digital nomads. The momentum underlines Batumi's growing importance as an investment location in Georgia's real estate sector.
📁 Consumption & retail
🔹 FMCG sector grows 10% to GEL 17.9bn
Georgia's fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector reached a volume of GEL 17.9bn in the first nine months, corresponding to 10% year-on-year growth, according to Galt & Taggart. Branded retail chains generated revenues of GEL 7.5bn and thus a market share of 41.8%, with growth of 11.6% on the prior-year period. The above-average performance of branded chains points to increasing consolidation in Georgian retail.
📁 Banking sector & M&A
🔹 Basisbank aborts acquisition of Liberty Bank
The acquisition talks between Basisbank and Liberty Bank, ongoing since the start of the year, have collapsed, according to the newspaper Rezonansi. Details on the reasons for the breakdown were not given. The failed transaction would have represented significant consolidation in Georgia's banking sector. It remains to be seen whether alternative buyers signal interest in Liberty Bank or whether the institution continues its standalone strategy.
📁 Foreign trade & agriculture
🔹 Hazelnut exports up 62% in value
Georgia's hazelnut exports amounted to 7,500 tonnes worth a total of USD 74.8m in the reporting period, the Ministry of Agriculture announced. Year-on-year, export value rose 62%. In parallel, trade with Russia – Georgia's third-largest trading partner with a 10.5% export share – rose 4.3% to USD 543.14m, while exports to Turkey slumped 31.5% to USD 237.8m. The data illustrate an increasing diversification of Georgia's export structure alongside strong dependence on a few key markets.
📩 Batumi Investment Club
Georgia's largest German-speaking investment club
