Georgia’s Prosecutor General’s Office said it is investigating Nana Keinishvili, National Bank of Georgia (NBG) Board member and former Georgian Dream MP, over alleged illegal participation in entrepreneurial activity. The NBG, meanwhile, said its Board would consider temporarily recusing Keinishvili from its sessions pending the outcome of the investigation.
Prosecutors said in the October 9 statement that the probe is based on statements and audio recordings provided by executives of BitExchange LLC, a virtual asset service provider, and forwarded by the National Bank to the prosecutors.
According to the prosecutors, the materials contain allegations that Keinishvili “is involved in entrepreneurial activities and directly controls a network of enterprises regulated by the National Bank, the shares of which are registered in the names of her family members and persons affiliated with her.”
The statements further showed that Keinishvili “also attempted to acquire shares in an enterprise regulated by the National Bank and thereby expand her own business activities,” the agency said.
Citing Georgia’s Law on Combating Corruption, the Prosecutor General’s Office noted that “a public servant does not have the right to engage in entrepreneurial activity.” It also cited the Organic Law on the National Bank, under which a Board member and “his/her family members do not have the right to be a partner of a representative of the Georgian financial sector or a legal entity related to it.”
The Office said the circumstances surrounding Keinishvili’s alleged involvement in entrepreneurial activities will be examined and “the public will be informed about the results of the investigation.”
NBG Statement
In a separate statement, the National Bank said it had reviewed the circumstances outlined in letters from the BitExchange representatives and conducted “an initial internal review within its competence.” However, it said the legal verification of the claims fell outside its mandate, and “the materials have been forwarded to the relevant authorized bodies,” expressing hope that the matter would be clarified promptly.
“Meanwhile, while the investigation is ongoing and until the matter is fully clarified, given the high reputational standard of the National Bank of Georgia’s activities, the National Bank Board will consider at its next session the question of temporarily recusing Nana Keinishvili from Board sessions,” the statement said.
The NBG further noted that it has fined BitExchange “for violating the Rule on Preventing Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism, following its scheduled inspection.”
Keinishvili was appointed to the NBG Board in September 2023, having been nominated by then-President Salome Zourabichvili, who later withdrew her support for the appointment. She served as a Member of Parliament from the ruling Georgian Dream party from 2012 to 2016, including as Deputy Chairperson of Parliament’s Budget and Finance Committee. From 2001 to 2012, she headed the Georgian Red Cross Society.
Under the Organic Law on the National Bank of Georgia, the Board is the institution’s highest governing body and consists of nine members. Board members are elected by Parliament for seven-year terms, following the nomination of candidates by the country’s President.
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