National Bank of Georgia

The National Bank of Georgia (NBG) is the central bank of Georgia. Its legal and institutional status is grounded in the Constitution of Georgia and the country's organic legislation governing the central bank. The institution's central mandate is to maintain price stability while supporting the efficient functioning and stability of Georgia's financial sector. It also serves as the bank of banks, banker and fiscal agent of the Georgian government, and sole issuer of Georgia's national currency. The modern NBG was established in 1991, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, on the basis of the Georgian Republican Bank of the State Bank of the USSR. Its creation formed part of Georgia's transition toward an independent monetary and financial system. The institution's history also connects to an earlier Georgian central-banking tradition: a first central bank was established in 1919, with Jason Lordkipanidze identified as its first manager. That earlier institution operated during the short-lived independent Georgian state before the country's incorporation into the Soviet system. The NBG's responsibilities extend beyond setting monetary policy. It issues currency, administers and implements monetary policy, contributes to financial-sector stability, and performs central-bank functions for commercial banks and the government. The bank publishes the decisions and explanatory reasoning of its Monetary Policy Committee after committee meetings, providing an official record of its policy process. The institution therefore functions both as a monetary authority and as a key financial regulator within Georgia. The supreme governing body is the Council of the National Bank. The Council consists of seven members, including the Council chair, two vice presidents, and other members. Council members are elected by the Parliament of Georgia for seven-year terms following nomination by the President of Georgia. The President of the National Bank is appointed from among Council members through the constitutionally defined appointment process. The bank is institutionally independent in its activities, while remaining accountable to Parliament and required to submit an annual report on its work. Since independence, the NBG has been led by a succession of governors spanning Georgia's post-Soviet institutional development. The leadership sequence includes Gia Topuria, Vazha Djindjikhadze, Nodar Kakulia, Demur Dvalishvili, Nodar Javakhishvili, Irakli Managadze, Roman Gotsiridze, David Amaglobeli, Giorgi Kadagidze, Koba Gvenetadze, and Natia Turnava. These administrations have overseen the operation of Georgia's monetary system and the development of its central-bank and financial-supervision framework. The NBG is not a commercial consumer brand and does not compete for retail customers. Its public-facing role is instead defined by institutional credibility, monetary stability, regulatory authority, transparency, and the reliable operation of Georgia's financial infrastructure. Its principal stakeholders are the Georgian public, the government, regulated financial institutions, Parliament, international financial organizations, and participants in domestic and cross-border financial markets.

Georgia's central-banking history predates the modern National Bank of Georgia. A first Georgian central bank was established in 1919 during the period of Georgian independence. Jason Lordkipanidze is identified as its first manager and served in the leadership of the State Bank of Georgia during the early 1920s. This initial institution represented an effort to establish a national monetary authority and financial infrastructure for the Georgian state. The development of Georgian central banking was interrupted by the country's incorporation into the Soviet system. Monetary and banking functions were subsequently organized within the Soviet financial structure rather than through an independent Georgian central bank. The institutional predecessor of the modern NBG was the Georgian Republican Bank of the State Bank of the USSR. In 1991, following the collapse of the Soviet Union and Georgia's restoration of independence, the Supreme Council of Georgia established the National Bank of Georgia on the basis of that Soviet-era republican banking structure. This marked the re-emergence of an independent Georgian monetary authority. The NBG inherited the practical challenge of building a functioning national monetary and financial system while the country was undergoing major political and economic transformation. The constitutional framework defines the bank as an independent institution. Its core duty is to ensure the functioning of Georgia's monetary system and provide price stability, while also supporting the efficient operation of the financial sector. The Constitution assigns the NBG the role of bank of banks and banker and fiscal agent of the Georgian government. It also grants the bank the sole right to issue money, making currency issuance a central element of its institutional identity. Governance is centered on the Council of the National Bank. The Council has seven members, including its president, two vice presidents, and other members. Parliament elects Council members by a majority of all parliamentary members following nomination by the President of Georgia, with each member serving a seven-year term. The President of the National Bank is selected from among Council members under the constitutional appointment process. The bank is accountable to Parliament and must report annually on its activities, creating a formal balance between operational independence and public accountability. The post-1991 leadership record reflects the evolution of the institution through Georgia's independent-state period. Gia Topuria and Vazha Djindjikhadze led during the first months of the modern bank's operation, followed by Nodar Kakulia, Demur Dvalishvili, and Nodar Javakhishvili. Irakli Managadze led from 1998 to 2005, followed by Roman Gotsiridze, David Amaglobeli, Giorgi Kadagidze, and Koba Gvenetadze. Natia Turnava became president in 2023 and is identified in the reference material as the current officeholder. Over time, the NBG's remit has encompassed monetary policy, currency issuance, central-bank services, and financial supervision. Monetary Policy Committee decisions and the reasons supporting them are published after committee meetings. This publication practice gives the public and financial markets access to the bank's formal policy decisions and stated rationale. Unlike a commercial bank, the NBG does not offer ordinary consumer products; its institutional outputs are policy decisions, regulatory actions, currency and payment infrastructure, financial information, and services to the banking system and government.

• 2023

  Natia Turnava becomes president

  [1]National Bank of Georgiaen.wikipedia.org

  Natia Turnava began her tenure as president of the National Bank of Georgia.

• 2016

  Koba Gvenetadze becomes president

  [1]National Bank of Georgiaen.wikipedia.org

  Koba Gvenetadze began his tenure as president of the National Bank of Georgia.

• 2009

  Giorgi Kadagidze becomes president

  [1]National Bank of Georgiaen.wikipedia.org

  Giorgi Kadagidze began his tenure as president of the National Bank of Georgia.

• 1991

  Modern National Bank of Georgia established

  [1]National Bank of Georgiaen.wikipedia.org

  The modern NBG was created on the basis of the Georgian Republican Bank of the State Bank of the USSR after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

• 1919

  First Georgian central bank established

  [1]National Bank of Georgiaen.wikipedia.org

  A first central bank was established in Georgia during the country's early independence period. Jason Lordkipanidze is identified as its first manager.

Georgia's independent central bank and monetary authority

• Central-bank policy

  Monetary policy

  The NBG formulates and implements monetary policy with price stability as its principal constitutional objective. Its Monetary Policy Committee publishes policy decisions and the reasons supporting them after committee meetings, making this one of the bank's principal public institutional outputs.

• Currency and monetary infrastructure

  Currency issuance

  The Constitution assigns the National Bank of Georgia the exclusive right to issue money. Currency issuance is therefore a sovereign central-bank function rather than a commercial product, supporting the operation of Georgia's monetary system.

• Financial supervision

  Banking supervision and financial regulation

  The NBG supports the sound and efficient functioning of Georgia's financial sector through its central-bank and supervisory responsibilities. This function covers the institutional oversight role expected of Georgia's banking and financial-sector authority.

• Institutional financial services

  Central-bank services

  The NBG serves as the bank of banks and provides the central-bank relationship for Georgia's financial system. It also acts as banker and fiscal agent of the Georgian government, distinguishing its services from those offered by ordinary commercial banks.

1. 1National Bank of Georgiaen.wikipedia.org