Page 35 - GEORptSep19

Bank of Georgia raises $50mn from Citi to finance trade
Georgia’s TBC Bank to “mirror” governance structure of parent group TBC Bank Group
executive officer of TBC Group Vakhtang Butskhrikidze.
According to TBC Bank Group, the agreement was reached with the founders of My.ge Lasha and Kakhaber (Kakha) Gigitelashvili. The transaction value is GEL19.5mn ($6.6mn), which means that the group is valued at GEL29.9mn. As part of the transaction, TBC Group has also entered into put/call option arrangements in respect of the remaining 35% of My Group.
My.ge group owns the platforms myauto.ge, myhome.ge, mymarket.ge, myparts.ge, mysports.ge and myjobs.ge. The sites in the group have 1.7mn unique users each month and are leaders in the classified real estate market. My Group has grown rapidly in recent years, increasing its number of unique visitors by around 20% during the last three years, while its revenue and profit before tax grew by 75% and 88% respectively during the same period. At the end of 2018, the gross assets of My Group stood at GEL3.3mn, while total revenue and profit before tax for the full year 2018 amounted to GEL4.0mn and GEL2.6mn respectively, based on My Group’s unaudited management accounts
My.ge was founded in 2002. According to the Registry of Entrepreneurs, before the acquisition of the company by TBC Group 30% of the shares were owned by Kakha Gigitelashvili and 70% by Lasha Gigitelashvili, who was also the director of the company.
One of Georgia’s two large banks, Bank of Georgia, has announced that it has borrowed $50mn from global financial group Citi under an agreement signed between the Bank of Georgia and Citi in 2011. It is the third transaction between the parties under the Continuing Agreement for Reimbursement of Trade Advances (CARTA).
The financial resources will enable the bank to offer corporates and SMEs products for financing trade.
“I am pleased that the Bank of Georgia, together with its loyal partner, Citi, continues to work actively on trade finance. This enables us to further strengthen our position in trade finance and offer our customers tailored financial resources. Such financing is important for both corporate and SMEs who are actively involved in export-import transactions. Our goal is to remain a reliable financial partner for them,” said Bank of Georgia CEO Archil Gachechiladze.
Taking into account shareholders’ feedback, as well as its experience of the benefits in having the same individuals serving in non-executive roles for both TBC Bank Group (parent company) and TBC Bank (a major bank in Georgia), TBC Bank Group on August 13 introduced the "Mirror Boards" governance structure for both entities.
Following the decision of the former chairman and deputy chairman to step down from the board of directors of TBC Bank Group (TBC PLC)—the LSE-listed parent of TBC Bank—and the subsequent appointment of Nikoloz Enukidze as the new TBC PLC chairman, the board reviewed the governance structure of the TBC group of companies (the "Group"), taking into consideration the feedback from certain shareholders, the international financial institution (IFI) partners and other stakeholders, TBC PLC announced. Under the "Mirror Boards" governance structure, all non-executive members of the TBC PLC Board and the supervisory board of the TBC Bank (the "Supervisory Board") will be the same. Separately, the chairman of TBC PLC will also serve as the chairman of TBC Bank. Senior independent director ("SID") of TBC PLC will also serve as the SID of the bank.
The board said it believed that these changes would maximise efficiencies in the management and supervision of the Group's business and would add
35 GEORGIA Country Report September 2019 www.intellinews.com