GEORGIAN BONDS NOW ELIGIBLE IN CLEARSTREAM

On 10 September 2018, Clearstream Banking S.A. started offering settlement, custody and asset servicing for selected Georgian corporate bonds, which is in addition to the securities issued by the Government of Georgia and international financial institutions (the “IFIs”). This was made possible via Clearstream’s indirect link with JSC Bank of Georgia as a sub-custodian and cash correspondent. By offering new services in Georgia, Clearstream further enhances the access to the Georgian capital market for international investors and is the sole international central securities depository (the “ICSD”) to offer such services.

As of the date hereof, the following corporate bonds have fulfilled Clearstream Banking eligibility criteria checks and will be available for foreign investors:

Issuer / ISIN

M2 Real Estate / GE2700603436

Georgian Leasing Company / GE2700603535

Nikora / GE2700603493

Silknet / GE2700603527

Georgian Leasing Company / GE2700603659

Microfiance Organisation Crystal / GE2700603592

 Following the amendments to the Georgian Tax Code effective 1 January 2018, non-resident corporate, non-resident individual and resident individual holders of Georgian listed corporate bonds issued prior to 2023 are exempt from capital gain and interest income (withholding) taxes.

George Paresishvili, Chief Executive Officer of the Georgian Stock Exchange, commented: “Making Georgian corporate bonds eligible in Clearstream is a very significant development for the Georgian capital market and marks another milestone on the road towards making the Georgian market accessible to a much wider universe of foreign investors. With an already strong pipeline of new publicly listed corporate bond issues, we expect their number to grow even further following their inclusion in the Clearstream link.”