My investing strategy is nothing special – I look for signs of relative value and growth at a reasonable price and then, if everything goes to plan, sell into strength (hopefully not too soon).
UK-listed banks were a notable part of my portfolio until recently. Clearly oversold in the rate-hiking post-pandemic years, and especially during the non-existent Silicon Valley Bank “crisis” - I bought and then sold into the recovery.
One place I redeployed the proceeds was TBC Bank (LON:TBCG) , where the same value signals were flashing just as loudly. It’s got all the hallmarks of a stock that’s being overlooked.
I’ve often looked at TBC Bank as an alternative to Nu Holdings – the Latam bank leveraging digital technology to reach a huge, underserved population. The profitability metrics are comparable, but Nu trades at 20x forward earnings, and offers no dividend. And as much as I like the Nu Holdings narrative and the relative vastness of the Latam market, my developing world preference is in fast-growing Georgia.
The Pitch
TBC Bank Group is Georgia's leading digital bank, with a growing presence in Uzbekistan. The business was founded in 1992 – a year after Georgia gained independence from the Soviet Union – in Tbilisi with just $500 in initial capital. It was incorporated in the UK in 2016 and is now a component of the FTSE 250.
So, what makes this stock worth pitching? Well, it’s got a great track record of growing revenue at pace (CAGR 24.5%) in the post-pandemic period, and forecasts are highly compelling. It’s operating primarily in Georgia, a country which is continuing to experience rapid economic growth – forecasts point to 5.3-7.4% this year.
But even a great business is a bad investment at the wrong price. What continues to interest me is the valuation. It trades at just 5.2x forward earnings with a 7% dividend yield.
The Big Picture
Georgia isn’t on every investor’s radar, and that’s not surprising. However, investors who were willing to do their research and invest in any of the three Georgian companies listed on the London Stock Exchange would have likely been well-rewarded over the past five years.
Georgia is one of the fastest-growing economies in Europe (if you consider it Europe), and it keeps confounding the sceptics. Q1 2026 GDP growth came in at 9.1% -- well ahead…
