Georgia’s banking market is an outlier in emerging Europe. Not only is it almost entirely free from foreign ownership, it is also highly concentrated. Between them, the two largest lenders – TBC Bank and Bank of Georgia – account for nearly two-thirds of sector assets.
In some markets this might be cause for concern. Vakhtang Butskhrikidze, chief executive of market leader TBC, insists that in Georgia – with a population of just 3.7 million – it is a natural function of the size of the market.
