TBC Group posts record profit, unveils buyback plan

TBC Group reported record third-quarter net profit of GEL 404 million and announced a GEL 50 million share buyback and cancellation programme.

Total operating income rose 10% year on year to GEL 961 million, while return on equity was 23.2%. Gross loans increased 16% year on year on a constant-currency basis to GEL 32.5 billion, and customer deposits rose 14% to GEL 27.6 billion.

The group also declared a quarterly dividend of GEL 1.75 per share. For the first nine months, dividend payments totalled GEL 5.25 per share, up 5% year on year.

For the first nine months, net profit reached GEL 1.155 billion, up 12% from a year earlier, with return on equity of 23.4%. Revenue growth and business expansion supported the result.

Asset quality remained stable during the quarter. Non-performing loans were unchanged from the previous quarter at 3.3% of gross loans, while cost of risk fell to 1.3%.

Georgia performance

The Georgian business remained the main contributor to earnings. Net profit in Georgia rose 17% year on year to GEL 406 million, exceeding the group total because of losses and minority effects elsewhere in the business.

Total operating income in Georgia increased 13% to GEL 778 million, helped by 20% growth in net interest income. The cost-to-income ratio improved by 0.8 percentage points year on year to 32.7%, while cost of risk improved by 0.1 percentage points from the previous quarter to 0.6%.

Loans and customer deposits in Georgia grew 18% and 15% respectively on a constant-currency basis. The bank added more than 70,000 digital users in the country during the quarter, and 87% of new unsecured retail loans were issued fully digitally, with an average acceptance time of about 30 seconds.

A new partnership with American Express is expected to support its payments business in Georgia.

Uzbekistan recovery

In Uzbekistan, TBC reported signs of recovery in lending alongside continued growth in payments and daily banking products. The gross loan book rose 3% from the previous quarter to GEL 2.37 billion, equivalent to USD 910 million.

Excluding instant cash loans, loan growth in Uzbekistan was 13% quarter on quarter. Salom Cards exceeded 1.5 million, while total payments value increased 54% year on year in US dollar terms.

Net interest margin in Uzbekistan returned to above 20% in the quarter, which the group attributed to a focus on deposit costs and growth in the loan portfolio. Cost of risk fell by 1.0 percentage point from the previous quarter to 10.8%, while non-performing loans rose by 1.2 percentage points to 11.8% as the portfolio matured.

The company also launched Novvot, a loyalty programme spanning TBC Uzbekistan, Payme and other products, aimed at increasing customer use across its digital services.

Capital returns

Capital ratios remained above regulatory minimums in both main markets. The Georgia Common Equity Tier 1 ratio was 17.0%, while the Uzbekistan ratio was 21.4%.

Vakhtang Butskhrikidze, Chief Executive Officer of TBC Group, said: "Our record quarterly earnings in 3Q 2026 reflect continued strong performance by the Group and underpin further capital returns through dividends and our GEL 50 million share buyback programme. We remain on track to deliver on our 2026-28 Group financial targets. Our Georgian business maintains strong momentum, driven by robust customer demand and increasing digital engagement. We added over 70k new active digital users in the third quarter, while our new partnership with American Express further enhances our payments offering. In corporate banking, we continue to extend our leadership, with loans up 23% year-on-year on a constant currency basis and Euromoney recognising us as the Best Bank for Large Corporates in Georgia for 2026. In Uzbekistan, lending is gradually recovering as we adapt to new regulatory requirements, while the non-credit parts of our ecosystem, led by our market-leading Payme franchise and daily banking, driven by Salom Card, continue to post robust growth. With the launch of Novvot, our cross-ecosystem loyalty programme, we are connecting millions of consumers with an expanding number of businesses across our digital financial ecosystem. We are also delighted that TBC Uzbekistan has been named among the World's Top Fintech Companies by CNBC and Statista for a second consecutive year."

TBC said it remained positioned to meet its medium-term financial targets, including annual loan book growth of more than 15%, annual return on equity above 23%, and an annual payout ratio of 25% to 45% through dividends and share buybacks.