Koba Gvenetadze, the Governor of the National Bank of Georgia, met with Pawel Herczynski, the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia. At the introductory meeting, the parties discussed the importance of close cooperation between Georgia and the European Union and the prospects of future cooperation.

 

The dialogue was focused on the economic situation of the region and the challenges and threats in the financial sector. Koba Gvenetadze said that the consistent and well-timed measures taken by the National Bank of Georgia before the pandemic helped the country to deal with the global challenges that the world is facing today. He also noted that the NBG joined the financial sanctions imposed by the USA, Great Britain, the European Union and other countries on the Russian Federation for the aggressive military actions in Ukraine. The twinning project was also mentioned, implemented with the active involvement of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority and the Central Banks of Poland and Lithuania. With their assistance, a package of legislative changes was prepared to bring Georgia’s legislation even closer to that of the EU. Georgia’s application for SEPA membership became possible as a result of that cooperation.

 

"We submitted an official application for joining the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) this year. It will significantly enhance the credibility of the Georgian financial sector in the international arena and will help simplify trade relations with the European Economic Area. Also, Georgian citizens will benefit from simplified and cheaper services, which is especially important, considering the growing trend of remittances from the EU countries. Georgia's future is in Europe, and SEPA membership will bring us one step closer to being a member of the European family," said Koba Gvenetadze.