The National Bank of Georgia (NBG) and the Georgian Financial Markets Treasuries Association (GFMTA), in partnership with Nasdaq, held the two-day international "GMAP Market Development Forum 2026" in Tbilisi.

The concept of the GMAP was presented to the wider public at the event. GMAP aims to support greater availability of risk-management and hedging instruments in Georgia's financial markets, and the formation of a more liquid and internationally accessible securities market. Alongside other initiatives, the deployment of modern treasury infrastructure plays an important role in achieving this goal, as it will enable commercial banks to offer the market more accessible and more diverse risk-hedging instruments.

One of the central focuses of the event was the technological component of the market-development initiative, carried out together with Nasdaq. As part of the deployment of the shared Treasury Management Solution, Bank of Georgia, TBC Bank, Liberty Bank, Terabank and Basisbank will conduct their treasury operations on the Nasdaq Calypso platform, which covers the full cycle of treasury operations. This shared system is a practical instrument that enables Georgia's banking sector to build the capabilities needed to achieve the market-development objectives set out under GMAP.

The Forum was opened by Natia Turnava, Governor of the National Bank of Georgia, who noted that a modern, liquid and internationally connected financial market is essential for the country's economic development.

"Our objective is to convert the foundation built so far for market development into real market activity — to gain more hedging instruments, a more active and liquid market, and closer connections between local players and international investors and counterparties," said Natia Turnava.

Forum participants were welcomed with opening remarks by Lasha Jugeli, Executive Secretary of GFMTA, and Brad Wilmot, Senior Vice President of Nasdaq.

According to Lasha Jugeli, Executive Secretary of the Georgian Financial Markets Treasuries Association, GFMTA's task is to support initiatives that help make Georgia's financial markets deeper and more active, and the deployment of the shared Treasury Management Solution on Nasdaq Calypso is one of the main technological pillars of that effort.

"The steady growth of Georgia's banking sector in recent years has created the need for treasury infrastructure that meets international standards. Deploying the Nasdaq Calypso system will allow banks to manage their treasury operations and core risks on a single, internationally standard infrastructure. The five banks participating in the project represent a significant share of the market, though the project also envisages further expansion in the future and the possibility of adding new participating banks," said Lasha Jugeli.

According to Brad Wilmot, Senior Vice President of Nasdaq, Nasdaq, as technology partner, is proud to support the initiative led by the National Bank of Georgia and GFMTA.

"The shared Treasury Management Solution gives every participating bank access to the same institutional-grade technology and standards used by leading markets around the world. Nasdaq is honoured to serve as technology partner to the National Bank of Georgia and GFMTA on this important journey, and we look forward to continuing this collaboration," said Brad Wilmot.

The international Forum was attended by local and international financial institutions and officials, including central banks, government authorities, commercial banks, market infrastructure providers, as well as local and international market participants, who discussed the progress achieved and the steps planned going forward under the Georgian Markets Advancement Program (GMAP). Participants also discussed topics such as international experience in market development, the transformation of treasury operations at Georgian banks, the legal foundations and practical mechanisms of the GEL-denominated derivatives market, and issues relating to increasing bond market liquidity.

The GMAP Forum is planned to be held annually. In addition, the National Bank of Georgia and GFMTA plan a range of further activities under GMAP throughout the year in support of the program's objectives.