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TBC Bank Group PLC on Friday posted lower profit and reduced its dividend after operating expenses climbed in the first half. Shares in the Tbilisi-based bank fell 11% to 4,525.00 pence on Friday morning in London. For the six months that ended June 30, pretax profit was ₾770.1 million, or £212.5 million, down 4.8% from ₾733.5 million the year prior. As a result, TBC cut its interim dividend per share to ₾1.75 from ₾2.55 a year ago. The reduction came in spite of higher net fee & commission income, which rose 33% to ₾303.6 million from ₾227.7 million. Net interest income grew by 24% to ₾1.12 billion from ₾1.0 billion on-year. Still, higher expenses offset the first-half income boost. Operating expenses were 19% ahead of the previous year at ₾601.7 million, versus ₾486.2 million. Other expenses net of tax nearly doubled to ₾68.1 million from £34.2 million. The bank attributed higher costs in part to restructuring and expansion in Uzbekistan, where it has established a majority-owned holding company, TBC Digital. Back in May, the bank agreed to give TBC Digital 100% ownership of regional subsidiaries JSCB TBC Bank and Payme JSC. ‘We also continued to build out our digital ecosystem through the launch of new products and strategic acquisitions. ‘Notably, we completed the rollout of TBC Insurance and agreed to acquire a majority stake in Billz, Uzbekistan’s leading [software-as-a-service] platform for businesses serving the retail sector, which will strengthen our business banking proposition,’ said Chief Executive Vakhtang Butskhrikidze. In Georgia, the CEO noted ‘continued solid growth’ during the first half of the year. ‘As we enter the second half of the year, we remain focused on meeting our 2025 targets,’ Butskhrikidze added. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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