On December 27, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed [1] financial sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili, honorary chairman of the Georgian Dream party. The sanctions [2] were imposed due to Ivanishvili's efforts to undermine democratic processes in Georgia in favor of the Russian Federation. A few days later, on December 31, 2024, Ivanishvili began transferring his companies from offshore zones to Georgia. 

According to media reports [3], between December 31, 2024, and January 20, 2025, Bidzina Ivanishvili, his wife Ekaterine Khvedelidze, and his son Uta Ivanishvili registered 4 new joint-stock companies: JSC Atu Holding, JSC Terra, JSC Lusol and JSC GCF Georgia. They have begun transferring ownership of Georgian companies they previously controlled through offshore entities to these newly established companies.

This transfer process has intensified in recent days. It is likely that by the end of this process, the Ivanishvili family will have fully transferred their Georgian assets from offshore structures.

As of January 29, Bidzina Ivanishvili and his eldest son, Uta Ivanishvili, have fully transferred companies from four offshore entities: 1) Visalia Enterprises Limited (Belize), 2) Gilmar Holding Limited (Belize), 3) Fresno Management Limited (Belize), 4) Limestone Finance International SA (Panama).

The Ivanishvili family is likely taking advantage of tax benefits introduced in the spring of 2024 under the so-called "offshore law" while transferring ownership of their companies. At the time, Transparency International Georgia noted [4] that the amendments to the Tax Code were likely designed to serve Bidzina Ivanishvili’s interests. 

Notably, the re-registrations involve family-owned companies with substantial charter capital. In total, these companies hold 163,187,800 GEL in registered capital.

Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Actions Following the U.S. Sanctions

December 31, 2024: Uta Ivanishvili, Bidzina Ivanishvili’s eldest son, registered JSC ATU Holding.

January 22, Bidzina Ivanishvili transferred ownership of LLC Finservice XXI to Uta Ivanishvili free of charge from his offshore company, Visalia Enterprises Limited (registered in Belize). This company owns part of the oligarch’s glass palace in Tbilisi. On January 24, Uta Ivanishvili transferred Finservice XXI to his newly registered company, JSC ATU Holding. 

January 28, JSC ATU Holding received three LLCs, Inter Consulting +, Cartu Mshenebeli, and Cartu Management free of charge from the Belize-registered offshore company Fresno Management Limited.

December 31, 2024: LLC Terra, fully owned by Bidzina Ivanishvili, was reorganized into a joint-stock company.

January 17, 2025: JSC Terra was transferred ownership of 7 companies from Ivanishvili’s offshore entity, Limestone Finance International SA (registered in Panama), free of charge:

• LLC Seaside View
• LLC New Capital
• LLC Invest Capital
• LLC Cartu Consulting
• LLC Abastumani 2019
• LLC Black Sea Arena
• LLC Geofert

January 20, 2025: Ekaterine Khvedelidze reorganized 4 Georgian LLCs, which she owns through the offshore company GCF Luxembourg SARL, into joint-stock companies:

• JSC Georgian Agro House – Subscribed capital: 2,700,000 GEL; paid-in capital: 684,000 GEL. Owned by LLC Greenhouse Holding.
• JSC GeoAgro – Subscribed capital: 40,000,000 GEL; paid-in capital: 31,608,130 GEL. Owned by LLC Agro Holding.
• JSC Galleria Tbilisi – Subscribed capital: 68,000,000 GEL; paid-in capital: 17,000,000 GEL. Owned by LLC Galleria Holding.
• JSC Seashore – Subscribed capital: 20,000,000 GEL; paid-in capital: 5,817,000 GEL. Owned by LLC Resort Holding.

January 20, 2025: JSC Lusol was registered in Georgia under Khvedelidze’s ownership.

January 27, 2025: JSC GCF Georgia was registered in Georgia under Khvedelidze’s ownership.

January 28, 2025: Uta Ivanishvili took full ownership of LLC Georgian Holding free of charge. The company had previously belonged to his Belize-registered offshore entity, Gilmar Holding Limited. Georgian Holding has a capital of 32,087,800 GEL.

On January 20, a statement [5] released by Bidzina Ivanishvili's lawyer, Lasha Kalandadze, revealed that the U.S. sanctions imposed on Ivanishvili personally have also affected his family members—Swiss bank Julius Baer froze the family's accounts, prompting Ivanishvili to consider legal action.

Transparency International Georgia continues to monitor Bidzina Ivanishvili’s companies and how he seeks to protect his assets from sanctions.