Country Desk

Georgia

Banking, transit & growth

Georgia is the transit state of the Middle Corridor and one of the region’s fastest-growing economies — strong banks, rising FDI, and hard questions at Anaklia. This desk tracks Caucasus Business Journal’s Georgia coverage: economy, banking, ports and politics.

Georgia at a glance

Capital & currency
Tbilisi · Georgian lari (GEL)
Growth
+7.9% in H1 2026 — ahead of the IMF forecast
FDI
$1.9bn in 2025, up 19.3%; Azerbaijan the #2 source
Banking
TBC: 14 straight quarters above 23% ROE
Transit
BTK railway at full capacity; EU lining up €2bn for transport
Anaklia
Shifted to a landlord model; state funding cut by two thirds

Georgia’s economy: frequently asked questions

How fast is Georgia’s economy growing?

Georgia’s economy grew 7.9% in the first half of 2026, outpacing the IMF’s forecast, on the back of services, tourism, transit and construction.

What is happening with the Anaklia deep-sea port?

Georgia abandoned the single-investor model in 2026, moving Anaklia to a landlord structure and cutting state funding by roughly two thirds — leaving the Middle Corridor’s key missing port still in limbo.

Why does Georgia matter for the Middle Corridor?

Every overland Middle Corridor route between the Caspian and the Black Sea crosses Georgia — through the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway, now at full capacity, and the ports of Poti and Batumi.

How strong are Georgia’s banks?

Georgian banking is among the region’s most profitable: TBC Bank has posted 14 consecutive quarters above 23% return on equity, with loans reaching GEL 29 billion.