As the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) releases its latest supervisory and financial strategy, the Georgian payments landscape is approaching a definitive “Great Leap Forward.” Based on recent updates from Varlam Ebanoidze (Head of Financial and Supervisory Technology at NBG) and the 2024-2025 roadmap, we are witnessing the convergence of three critical pillars: Instant Payments (IPS), Open Finance, and Regulatory Convergence (PSD2/SEPA).
1. The Instant Payments System (IPS): More Than Just Speed
The NBG’s commitment to launching a central Instant Payments infrastructure (target 2026) is the most significant structural shift since the adoption of card-based eCommerce.
Request to Pay (RTP): A critical feature highlighted in recent NBG engagements is the RTP functionality. This allows e-commerce and utility providers to send digital “payment requests” directly to a customer’s banking app, simplifying the UX and reducing reliance on manual IBAN entries.
Beyond Card Rails: IPS introduces account-to-account (A2A) clearing and settlement in real-time. For merchants, this means an alternative to traditional card networks, potentially lowering transaction costs and eliminating the “weekend liquidity gap.”
2. Open Finance: The Data Monetization Frontier
Georgia is moving past basic Open Banking (balance inquiries) into a comprehensive Open Finance ecosystem.
The Fintech Bridge: The strategy emphasizes reducing entry barriers for non-bank participants. By leveraging ISO 20022 standards and standardized APIs, the NBG is ensuring that fintechs can build value-added services atop traditional bank data.
Strategic Opportunity: For incumbents and challengers alike, the shift from “data silos” to “data ecosystems” allows for hyper-personalized lending, automated treasury management for SMEs, and advanced financial planning tools.
3. Regulatory Harmonization and SEPA Aspirations
The ongoing approximation of Georgian law with PSD2 and the pursuit of SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) membership are strategic imperatives.
Trust and Security: Alignment with PSD2 ensures that Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) and 3DS standards remain robust, protecting the ecosystem against the rising tide of real-time fraud.
Cross-Border Efficiency: SEPA membership would revolutionize how Georgia interacts with the Eurozone, significantly reducing the cost of remittances and B2B trade payments, effectively making “local” transfers possible across borders.
4. Data-Driven Resilience
From a data analyst’s perspective, the NBG’s 2024 Financial Stability Report indicates a healthy, highly profitable banking sector with declining dollarization. However, the true story lies in the volume shift. Digital transactions are growing at double-digit rates, while cash’s share of retail continues to shrink. The “digital-first” consumer is no longer a niche segment but the market standard.
Our Perspective
At Payments Laboratory, we view these shifts through our signature “Labyrinth” lens. The complexity of these systems: API integrations, PCI DSS compliance in a cloud-first world, and the navigation of new instant-payment SLAs requires a guide that understands both the regulatory “why” and the technical “how.”
Success will not come from simply offering a payment method, but from orchestrating a seamless flow of data and value across IPS, card rails, and Open Finance APIs.
The next 24 months will define the winners in the Georgian payment’s ecosystem