EBRD Expands Partnership with TBC Bank in Georgia with $30 Million Financing to Boost Climate Governance

EBRD Expands Partnership with TBC Bank in Georgia with $30 Million Financing to Boost Climate Governance

(IN BRIEF) The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is strengthening its collaboration with Georgia’s leading financial institution, TBC Bank, by providing a $30 million (€28.1 million) financing facility. This funding is aimed at bolstering TBC Bank’s capital base and ensuring its continued support for the real economy. Notably, TBC Bank commits to aligning its financial flows with the goals of the Paris Agreement, focusing on climate governance and climate risk management. As part of this commitment, TBC Bank becomes the first EBRD partner bank in the Caucasus region to engage in a multi-year cooperation with the aim of aligning its activities with the Paris Agreement objectives. The EBRD’s broader goal is to align all of its activities with the Paris Agreement by the end of 2022, reinforcing its commitment to green finance and sustainable development. This partnership reaffirms the EBRD’s dedication to supporting TBC Bank’s transition towards more environmentally responsible business practices while strengthening Georgia’s financial sector.

(PRESS RELEASE) LONDON, 15-Nov-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is expanding its cooperation with TBC Bank in Georgia through a US$ 30 million (€28.1 million) financing facility to strengthen TBC’s capital base and enable it to continue lending to the real economy.

The funding commits TBC Bank, the leading financial institution in Georgia, to better alignment with the Paris Agreement by implementing greater climate governance and climate risk management.

TBC Bank will be the first EBRD partner bank in the Caucasus region to commit to a multi-year cooperation with the Bank to ensure that its financial flows become aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

At the EBRD’s 2021 Annual Meeting, the Board of Governors committed to aligning all of the Bank’s activities with the Paris Agreement by the end of 2022. This complements the Bank’s ambition to make more than half of its finance green by 2025 and to accelerate the greening process among its clients and the economies in which it operates. All of the economies in which the EBRD invests, including Georgia, have endorsed the Paris Agreement.

“The EBRD is committed to supporting its long-standing partner, TBC Bank, in embarking on a transformational journey to develop and implement a plan, which will advance its climate business practices in line with the best international standards,” said Alkis Vryenios Drakinos, EBRD Regional Director for the Caucasus.

“I am delighted that our strategic partnership with the EBRD continues with another excellent transaction,” said Vakhtang Butskhrikidze, Chief Executive Officer of JSC TBC Bank. “This subordinated loan facility will strengthen TBC’s capital structure and increase the Bank’s long-term resilience. I am also particularly proud that TBC is the first EBRD partner bank in the region to develop a Paris alignment transition plan and commit to progressively align TBC’s business practices with the Paris Agreement goals. I would like to thank the EBRD for its continued support and look forward to working with it on many more successful deals in the future.”

To date, the EBRD has invested more than €5 billion in 288 projects in Georgia.

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SOURCE: EBRD