Since 2022, after the start of the "SVO", many Russians have left for Georgia. Since then, they have opened over 30 thousand companies and individual entrepreneurs in small and medium businesses. In total, more than 37 thousand legal entities owned by Russian citizens operate in Georgia.
Of the registered companies, 20,885 have an active status. Their main areas of activity include energy, telecommunications, industry, and gambling.
According to the Institute for the Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), large Russian companies often enter the Georgian economy through offshore companies, which makes it difficult to track them. Registration in most cases occurs with a fictitious address.
"One of the legal addresses (where 1,467 individual entrepreneurs are registered) is actually an unused garbage container of a residential building," the study says.
