The Vice Governor of the National Bank of Georgia, Papuna Lezhava, talked about the increase of the countercyclical buffer for banks on the air of TV-Porgram Business Course. According to him, this decision was due to the recommendation of the Basel Committee. To the question, how many millions of GEL the banks will have to reserve, Papuna Lezhava answers that this amount will be equal to half a billion GEL.
The National Bank deeply believes that due to the growth of the buffer, banks will not need to raise additional capital, as they have sufficient resources to replenish reserves.
"It is 1% or 500 million for every bank, although this is the capital that banks still have today in the form of working capital. We believe that banks will not have to raise additional capital. With internal buffers and generated profits, banks will be able to meet this demand. It is natural that the capital buffer should be filled," said Papuna Lezhava.
According to the decision of the National Bank, banks must fill the countercyclical buffer within 12 months.
As of 2023, the volume of assets of the banking system of Georgia amounts to GEL 67 billion.
