EUGBC

Members News

 

We are pleased to share that we have acted as the Georgian legal counsel to the Lender in connection with the USD 150 million loan facility granted to TAV Georgia, a member of Groupe ADP. This financing supports the next phase of development at Tbilisi International Airport, including a significant expansion program set to double the airport’s annual capacity to 10 million passengers, and includes a concession extension for TAV Georgia through 2031. This transaction marks a significant milestone in Georgia’s infrastructure development, strengthening Tbilisi’s position as a regional aviation hub.

 

Our Team on this transaction was led by Partner Sophie Panjikidze, together with Senior Associate Nino Gobejishvili and Associates Tekla Megreli and Nino Karalashvili. We congratulate our team, as well as all parties involved in this important transaction and their respective legal counsel on this success.

 

Gvinadze & Partners LLC is a leading Georgian business law firm celebrating three decades of legacy of serving and promoting business and investment in Georgia, and it is widely recognized as the highest quality legal service provider in all key practice areas including Banking and Finance.


 

 

BDO Caucasus & Central Asia (CCA), a new unified regional firm, has officially launched, integrating 5 countries: Georgia, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. As a part of the BDO global network, the 5th largest audit and accounting firm in the world, this landmark integration is positioned to leverage unparalleled global resources to establish a new standard for professional services and drive economic development across the region.

BDO firms collectively provide professional services in more than 165 countries, supported by 119,000+ people working from more than 1,750 offices worldwide.

Vision for a Stronger Regional Firm

The creation of BDO CCA directly addresses the complex challenges faced by modern professional services, including navigating tightening regulations, a demanding talent market, accelerated technological investment, and rising client expectations that require both deeper expertise and broader capabilities.

BDO CCA is the strategic answer to these demands. The platform’s primary objective is to create a space for shared vision, collaborative development strategy, and comprehensive knowledge exchange, transforming national partnerships into a powerful, unified regional force. By integrating the collective experience, human resources, and innovative approaches of the five countries, BDO CCA will build a stronger, more flexible, and highly competitive professional services firm.

Strategic Leadership Appointment

To lead this significant regional integration and growth, BDO CCA will be governed by an Executive Committee (ExCo) and announces the appointments of key leaders who will drive the unified strategy across the regional firm:

Zurab Lalazashvili, formerly the Managing Partner of BDO Georgia, has been appointed as the Regional CEO of BDO CCA and a member of the BDO CCA ExCo.

Vahagn Sahakyan will serve as the Country Managing Partner of BDO Armenia and a member of the BDO CCA ExCo.

Maia Khachidze will serve as the Country Managing Partner of BDO Georgia and a member of the BDO CCA ExCo.

Davron Yakubov will serve as the Country Managing Partner of BDO Uzbekistan.

Trond-Morten Lindberg, BDO’s Chief Strategy and Operations Officer and incoming Global CEO’s Statement:

“The launch of BDO Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA) is a powerful, strategic realization of our global vision to greater network integration. Integrating five countries into one cohesive regional firm, means leveraging collective resources to achieve scale, drive innovation, and deliver the seamless, high-quality client experience that BDO’s regional and international clients demand. This model is key to securing BDO’s sustainable growth and reinforcing our leadership position in this rapidly developing region.”

 

Regional CEO Statement

Zurab Lalazashvili, Regional CEO of BDO CCA, comments on the launch:

“BDO CCA brings together our collective strengths to create a new model of regional integration. By combining the experience and capabilities of five countries, we are building a stronger, more agile, and more sustainable organization. Our aim is to form the leading regional professional services firm in the Caucasus and Central Asia – one that effectively unifies expertise, resources, and operational standards across the region. This is a strategic investment in regional progress and in the economic future we are shaping together.

Mr. Lalazashvili further clarifies the structural benefits:

“This will be a single partnership under an unified management – one firm in five countries. The main purpose of this model is to unify our knowledge, expertise, and human capital, enabling us to offer a more diverse and comprehensive suite of services to regional and international clients, backed by the strength of the 5th largest global network.”

Country Managing Partners Statements 

Maia Khachidze, CMP, BDO Georgia comments: 

“This new regional step will bring renewed energy and opportunities for BDO Georgia. Our expanded regional presence, BDO CCA, allows us to offer more effective support and additional expertise to Georgian companies looking to enter or grow their businesses in the region, while also sharing knowledge and embracing new perspectives from our partner countries. We are focused on strengthening our team culture to ensure continuous development and maximize the professional potential of every employee.”

Vahagn Sahakyan, CMP, BDO Armenia said:

“BDO Armenia is proud to be one of the founding partners in this regional integration. For Armenia, BDO CCA represents an opportunity to scale our impact beyond national boundaries while maintaining the quality and client relationships we’ve built over the years. This regional model enables us to participate in larger, more complex engagements and attract top talent who see the career opportunities of a multi-country platform. This initiative reflects our shared vision with our colleagues in Georgia and across Central Asia to build something greater than any single country firm could achieve alone.”

Davron Yakubov, CMP, BDO Uzbekistan

“We are very excited about our regional cooperation model, as this will enable our young practice in Uzbekistan to grow dynamically and offer excellent quality service in even wider range of advisory and compliance services with faster mobility of expertise across the geographies. Our CCA region has a lot of similarities, therefore finding synergies and leveraging the strength of the individual jurisdiction will be achieved with ease, which should ultimately benefit our people as well as our clients.”

Alignment with Global Strategy

The BDO CCA model is a direct continuation of the BDO global network’s strategy, which has successfully established similar regional integration models around the world. This strategic move ensures BDO remains at the forefront of global professional trends, positioning regional unity and collaboration as the core axis of its development.

BDO CCA is poised to unlock new possibilities, broader scales of cooperation, increased international project involvement, and the strengthening of regional leadership for all member firms.


Gvinadze & Partners pleased to share that Managing Partner Nick Gvinadze continues to be recognized as a “Thought Leader” in Arbitration – according to the prestigious Lexology Index 2025 recent publication. As in many previous years, Nick also continues to be ranked as a “Highly Regarded” practitioner in the Energy, Oil and Gas industry sector by the recently published IFLR1000.

As we celebrate three decades of legacy in this practice, we would like to thank our clients and colleagues for continued high recognition of our team’s work, and congratulate all our colleagues also ranked this year!

 


November 26, 2025 – Dentons’ Tbilisi office has acted as local counsel to J.P. Morgan, Citigroup, BCP Securities, Société Générale, Oppenheimer and Galt & Taggart, as Joint Lead Managers, on issuance of GEL 450 million 11.50% senior unsecured Notes by Lion Finance Group PLC’s banking subsidiary in Georgia, JSC Bank of Georgia. The Notes were issued in accordance with Reg S/Rule 144A and sold at an issue price of 100%. The Notes are listed on Euronext Dublin and are rated Ba2 by Moody’s Investors Service Ltd.

The Dentons’ team on the deal was led by Partner Avto Svanidze and included Senior Associates Neli Tsivtsivadze, Sopho Mebonia and Natela Otaridze, and Associates Lela Basilaia and Veriko Berekashvili.

Avto Svanidze commented: “We are delighted to work together with Sidley Austin LLP, international counsel, on the largest local-currency Eurobond from the private sector across the Caucasus, Turkey, and Central Asia in 2025. Our practice has longstanding history of working on Bank of Georgia capital markets transactions, such as its first corporate Eurobond listing, and its listing on the London Stock Exchange, the first international IPO from Georgia.”

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