"Basisbank" is no longer proceeding with its plan to acquire "Liberty Bank". Following the statement by Natia Turnava, President of the National Bank of Georgia, Irakli Rukhadze, co-owner of Liberty Bank, has also confirmed that Basisbank is no longer considering the purchase.
“Consultations between the parties continue on various forms of partnership, which potentially include the merger of the two banks. If we are talking about anything now, it is more about a merger in which both parties will remain,” said Rukhadze in a comment to BMG.
Earlier, Natia Turnava noted that the structure of the deal might change, emphasizing that negotiations were still ongoing between the two entities.
According to BMG’s information, one of the unresolved issues during the acquisition process was the valuation of the deal, which Rukhadze indirectly confirmed several weeks ago. He explained that the National Bank’s imposed restrictions and procedural requirements contributed to delays and complications.
“This is more a consequence than a cause. The National Bank imposed certain restrictions and preconditions on Basisbank, which delayed the deal. For example, documentation, especially from China, was not easy to collect. This led to various complications. One of the reasons is that Liberty has grown during this time, and the deal we made at the beginning of the year looks different today. However, we continue to work on the deal,” said Rukhadze.
Negotiations between the two banks regarding Basisbank’s potential acquisition of Liberty had been underway since early 2025.
Who Owns Liberty and Basisbank?
Liberty Bank has long been the third-largest bank in Georgia, with assets totaling 5.77 billion GEL as of September 2025 and a loan portfolio of 4.12 billion GEL. The bank posted a profit of 94.5 million GEL in the first nine months of 2025 and is owned by Hunnewell Partners, an investment holding managed by Irakli Rukhadze.
Basisbank, owned by the Chinese Hualing Group, is currently the fourth-largest bank in Georgia, with assets of 4.47 billion GEL and a loan portfolio of 3.13 billion GEL. The bank earned 79.3 million GEL in profit during the same period.
If the two banks merge, their combined assets would total 10.24 billion GEL, and their joint loan portfolio would reach 7.25 billion GEL, potentially creating one of the largest players in Georgia’s banking sector.
