Decisions of the National Bank of Georgia
The National Bank of Georgia has considered inadmissible the complaint lodged by the "EGT Express Georgia" LLC. The case concerned the alleged violation of the article 6 (Abuse of a Dominant Position) of the Law of Georgia "On Competition" by JSC "TBC Bank". The complainant, which is a transportation company, claimed that JSC "TBC Bank" obstructed its payment operations and discriminated against it in favor of other competitor transportation companies.
As a result of a thorough analysis of the case materials and circumstances, the National Bank of Georgia concluded that the JSC "TBC Bank" acted in compliance with the requirements of the AML legislation and found no signs of anti-competitive behaviour. Consequently, the National Bank of Georgia determined that there was no reasonable suspicion of the violation of the law and decided not to initiate an investigation. Additionally, The National Bank of Georgia issued a mandatory review recommendation to JSC "TBC Bank".
The National Bank of Georgia initiated an investigation, pursuant to the Order of July 6, 2021, into the possible abuse of dominant position by JSC "Bank of Georgia" and JSC "TBC Bank". The investigation focused on the payment of public transportation fees and the creation of transportation management and control systems in the municipalities of Tbilisi, Kutaisi, and Gori.
The primary subject of the investigation was whether the competition was restricted by tying transportation payment cards, intended for free or low-cost transportation for students and pupils, to the payment card of JSC "Bank of Georgia".
According to the decision of December 27, 2023, by the Competition Committee of the National Bank of Georgia, it was concluded that JSC "Bank of Georgia" and JSC "TBC Bank" did not violate Article 6(2)(D) the law of Georgia "On Competition". As a result, the administrative proceedings were ceased.
The National Bank of Georgia has considered complaint submitted by JSC "Oppa" of July 2, 2021 regarding the alleged violation of Article 6 (abuse of a dominant position) of the Law of Georgia "On Competition" by LLC "Miso Rico Express". The complaint was about the imposition of different conditions by the respondent regarding the service fee for the complainant in the field of payment services.
As a result of studying the complaint and analyzing the relevant market, the National Bank considered that LLC "Miso Rico Express" did not have a dominant position in the relevant market, which, in turn, excluded the legal possibility of violating the mentioned norm on its part. Thus, the complaint was declared inadmissible and the complainant was refused to start investigating the case.
The National Bank of Georgia has considered complaint submitted by JSC "Oppa" of July 2, 2021 regarding the alleged violation of Article 6 (abuse of a dominant position) of the Law of Georgia "On Competition" by LLC "Goa credit". The complaint was about the imposition of different conditions by the respondent regarding the service fee for the complainant in the field of payment services.
As a result of studying the complaint and analyzing the relevant market, the National Bank considered that LLC "Goa credit" did not have a dominant position in the relevant market, which, in turn, excluded the legal possibility of violating the mentioned norm on its part. Thus, the complaint was declared inadmissible and the complainant was refused to start investigating the case.
The National Bank of Georgia has considered JSC "Credo Bank" notice of 31 May, 2021 regarding the purchase of 100% share of JSC "FINCA Bank Georgia". Mentioned concentration was subject of prior written notice according to Article 11 of the Law of Georgia "On Competition" and "On the approval of the rule of market analysis and submission and consideration of notification of concentration" by the order №68/04 of May 28, 2021 of the President of the National Bank of Georgia;
The National Bank of Georgia reviewed market of loan products of up to 100,000 GEL and the market of loan products with a volume of more than 100,000 GEL in accordance with the legislation. As a result, according to the decision of the National Bank concentration was considered compatible with the competitive environment and corresponding decision was made on June 29, 2021.