Georgia's banking sector: two London-listed banks and a system that punches above its weight

For a country of 3.7 million people, Georgia maintains a banking system of improbable quality. Two of its banks — TBC Bank and Bank of Georgia (now under Lion Finance Group) — are listed on the London Stock Exchange and sit in the FTSE 250, publishing accounts to a standard that most emerging-market lenders never approach. Together they hold roughly three-quarters of the system's loans and deposits, and in 2025 the sector as a whole posted a record net profit of GEL 3.3 billion — about USD 1.2 billion — while total assets grew 12.1 per cent to GEL 108 billion, crossing 100 per cent of GDP for the first time.

Behind those numbers stands an economy that has repeatedly outgrown its forecasts: real GDP expanded around 9.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2025, with full-year growth in the 5.5–6 per cent range, while non-performing loans across the banking book stayed near 1.5 per cent. The National Bank of Georgia supervises 19 second-tier banks, including two newly licensed microbanks, and has earned a reputation as a conservative, rules-driven regulator — a fact that matters enormously to anyone who intends to move serious money through the system.

Digital-first by necessity, excellent by habit

Georgian banking is strikingly modern in daily use. TBC and Bank of Georgia compete on app quality the way airlines compete on schedules, and both have taken their platforms abroad — into Uzbekistan and Armenia — precisely because the domestic product proved exportable. Multi-currency accounts in lari, dollars and euros are standard; cards issue in days; and the payment infrastructure — from instant transfers to universal QR acceptance — works with a smoothness that surprises visitors from far larger economies.

Opening an account: what it actually takes

The practical question for any foreign founder is onboarding. Georgian banks are open to non-resident individuals and to Georgian companies with foreign shareholders, but they are compliance-serious institutions answerable to correspondent networks in London and New York. Expect genuine KYC: source-of-funds evidence, a coherent business description, and — for corporate accounts — clarity on beneficial ownership. Personal accounts for visitors can often be opened in a branch within a day; corporate accounts for newly formed LLCs move at the speed of the file's quality. A well-prepared application with clean AML documentation passes; an improvised one stalls.

Why this matters for structuring

Banking is where paper structures meet reality. A company is only as useful as its account, and Georgia's combination — credible LSE-listed banks, a conservative central bank, full currency convertibility and no exchange controls — makes it one of the few low-tax jurisdictions where the banking layer strengthens the case rather than undermining it. For businesses operating between the Gulf, Europe and the CIS, a Georgian account adds a settlement point that is inside the region's trade flows yet outside its complications. It is also, notably, a system that has remained open to properly registered virtual-asset businesses — a rarity worldwide, and the subject of our companion piece on the VASP regime.