BGEO announces further strengthening of management

BGEO Group PLC (the “Group” or “BGEO”), announces a key Group management appointment and key management appointments and a refreshed business unit structure at JSC Bank of Georgia (“BoG” or the “Bank”).

• Archil Gachechiladze will be appointed CEO of Georgia Global Utilities (“GGU”), the utilities and energy business of the Group
• David Tsiklauri will be appointed to the position of Deputy CEO at the Bank, and will lead the Bank’s Corporate Investment Banking Department (“CIB”), replacing Archil.
• Given the further growth opportunities in our Retail Banking and the Bank’s strategy to significantly grow the business with a target of making Retail Banking at least 65% of the Bank’s loan book, the Bank is splitting the Retail Banking business into two separate directions, to be managed by two Deputy CEOs of the Bank.
• Mikheil Gomarteli, Deputy CEO at the Bank, will continue to lead the Express Bank operations (emerging retail segment) and Bank of Georgia brand operations (mass retail segment).
• Ramaz Kukuladze will be appointed Deputy CEO at the Bank, and will lead the Bank’s Small and Medium banking business (“SME”) and premium retail banking business (“Solo”)
  

Irakli Gilauri, Group CEO commented: “I am delighted to announce these appointments that will further strengthen management throughout the Group, following Kaha Kiknavelidze’s appointment as the Bank’s CEO in September.
As we start to prepare GGU for an IPO, we are further strengthening the GGU team and appointing Archil as the CEO of GGU. Archil has an outstanding execution track record with the Bank and, just as importantly, he is very passionate about the business of GGU. Archil initiated our investment in the utility and energy business, when he was the Group CFO. We are also consolidating the Group’s utilities and energy businesses under GGU. The current management of the utility business will stay unchanged. I would like to congratulate Archil on this promotion and I very much look forward to working closely with him to deliver another successful IPO in two-three years time.

David has extensive experience in the financial services industry. Ramaz has a breadth of experiences and a deep knowledge of the segments that he is going to lead. Mikheil has nearly 20 years of successful leadership track record within the Bank. The three will make an outstanding team that will lead the Bank’s three main sources of business. Additionally, Kaha will personally oversee the Bank’s wealth management operations, which were under CIB department previously. I am confident that the new executive team will deliver on the opportunity to build on the Bank’s recent strong growth by further developing its presence and profitability in both the retail and corporate banking sectors in Georgia.”

Archil Gachechiladze is a long-time professional within the Group, and has held various key senior positions since he joined in 2009. Prior to this appointment, Archil was the Deputy CEO at the Bank, in charge of CIB since February 2016, prior to which he served as Group CFO and Deputy CEO in charge of Investment Management. He joined the Group in October 2009 as Deputy CEO Corporate Banking. Prior to joining Bank of Georgia, Archil served as deputy director in charge of corporate recovery at TBC Bank, Georgia, a position he took up in August 2008. From 2006 to 2008, he was an associate at Lehman Brothers Private Equity (currently Trilantic Capital Partners) in London. From 1998 to 2004, he served as a senior associate at Salford Equity Partners, senior analyst at EBRD in Tbilisi and London, senior financial analyst at KPMG Barents in

Tbilisi and team leader for the World Bank’s CERMA Project in Tbilisi. Archil has an MBA with distinction from Cornell University. He is also a CFA charterholder.

David Tsiklauri has extensive experience in banking and as well as the corporate segment in Georgia, having worked as the Deputy CEO in charge of Corporate Banking at TBC Bank since 2014. Prior to that he served as the Vice President of the Capital Markets and Treasury Solutions team at Deutsche Bank since 2011, where he started as an associate in the Debt Capital Markets Department in 2008. David has an MBA degree from London Business School.

Ramaz Kukuladze rejoins the Group, having worked as deputy CEO of the Bank prior to leaving for Silknet (telecommunications company in Georgia) where he spent two years in the capacity of Deputy CEO, in charge of commercial business. Later, Ramaz joined Bank Republic Société Générale where he led the bank’s corporate and retail business as Deputy CEO since 2011. While at Bank of Georgia, Ramaz was responsible for Corporate Banking. Prior to that, he served as Chief Executive Officer of BCI, an Insurance Company founded by him in 1998, which later was acquired by the Group. Ramaz has an executive MBA degree from IE Business School