The non-governmental organization Transparency International Georgia has released an investigative report titled “One Cashbox for Two Parties.” The study reveals that by August 2026, 28 donors had transferred 861,750 GEL (approximately $320,000 at current exchange rates) to the People’s Power party, an offshoot of the ruling Georgian Dream. Among them, 21 individuals had previously donated 1,969,169 GEL to Georgian Dream, and three continue to finance both political parties to this day.
According to the NGO, these findings reaffirm that People’s Power, which emerged from Georgian Dream’s parliamentary ranks, functions as an integral part of Bidzina Ivanishvili’s power vertical.
As highlighted in the report, a prominent cluster among the donors comprises individuals from the billionaire’s entourage—namely, business partners of his brother Aleksandre Ivanishvili and his cousin Ucha Mamatsashvili, as well as representatives of joint-stock companies directly affiliated with the billionaire’s family. In total, these individuals donated 381,000 GEL to People’s Power between 2024 and 2026.
According to the study’s findings:
- Among the donors is Archil Mamatsashvili, a representative of companies affiliated with Bidzina Ivanishvili and the Director General of Cartu Insurance Company JSC. Archil Mamatsashvili donated 70,000 GEL to People’s Power in 2025–2026, having previously contributed 55,600 GEL to Georgian Dream. Cartu Insurance Company has received approximately 3.5 million GEL from government agencies and municipal entities through the public procurement system. Alongside Archil Mamatsashvili, individuals associated with this joint-stock company (Alla Kakhniauri, Kakha Kobiashvili, Zaza Verdzeuli, Givi Lebanidze, and Zurab Chachkhiani) transferred 1 million GEL to Georgian Dream. Archil Mamatsashvili also sits on the supervisory board of Atu Holding, another entity tied to Ivanishvili;
- Giorgi Damenia, a business partner of the former prime minister’s brother Aleksandre Ivanishvili in Tornado+ LLC, donated 120,000 GEL to People’s Power in 2025–2026, after having earlier transferred 170,000 GEL to Georgian Dream. The company itself contributed 85,000 GEL to Ivanishvili’s party between 2016 and 2018;
- Another major donor to People’s Power linked to Bidzina Ivanishvili’s inner circle is Irakli Bekauri, Director General of Bolero & Company LLC. The company is 100% owned by Vakhtang Karichashvili, a business associate of Ivanishvili’s cousin Ucha Mamatsashvili. Karichashvili holds dual Georgian and Russian citizenship, his enterprises rank among the top ten exporters of Georgian wine to the Russian Federation, and he received 56 million GEL in subsidies from the Ministry of Agriculture between 2014 and 2024. In 2026, prior to transferring 60,000 GEL to People’s Power, Bekauri donated 327,000 GEL to Georgian Dream;
- Levan Getsadze is another People’s Power sponsor connected to Irakli Bekauri and Vakhtang Karichashvili. Getsadze’s name regularly appears in Public Registry filings as an authorized representative of companies owned by Ucha Mamatsashvili’s business partners. His 13,000 GEL contribution to People’s Power was his first political donation. For many years, Getsadze owned Trezori LLC, established in 2019—a diagnostic and medical laboratory located in Tbilisi’s Dighomi district. Shortly after its incorporation, the enterprise began securing public procurement contracts, accumulating roughly 3.2 million GEL to date. The laboratory is currently owned by the US-registered firm Quest Biosciences LLC;
- Investigative journalism also links another prominent donor to People’s Power, David Balanchivadze, to Ucha Mamatsashvili. In 2016–2017, the investigative reporting outlet Studio Monitor linked Balanchivadze’s appointment as Executive Director of RMG Gold to Mamatsashvili’s business interests. Balanchivadze began making political contributions to Georgian Dream in 2016, ultimately donating 532,000 GEL to the ruling party, before contributing 60,000 GEL to People’s Power in 2026;
- The donor roster also includes Giorgi Meskhi, who led the state-owned enterprise Sakspetstrans LLC from 2017 to 2020. His contributions to People’s Power amounted to 58,000 GEL in 2024. He made no political donations prior to that year. While heading the state-owned enterprise, Meskhi co-founded the construction firm Hiteco Group alongside business partner Giorgi Khujadze. Meskhi is currently the sole shareholder (100%) and director of the group, which is developing a high-rise hotel in Tbilisi’s Isani district. Additionally, Meskhi holds a 33% stake in Gonio Group;
- Another sponsor of People’s Power tied to Tbilisi’s residential construction sector is Guram Tetrashvili, Director of Georgia-Israel Business Group LLC. The company’s owner, Besik Papismedov, is implementing a number of real estate development projects across the capital. For Tetrashvili, as for Giorgi Meskhi, the 10,000 GEL transfer to People’s Power marked his first political donation.
“As noted, three of the 28 donors to People’s Power—Aleksandre Tushuri, Mamuka Gogrichiani, and Givi Gabunia—continue to fund Georgian Dream as well. On December 11, 2025, all three transferred a combined 60,000 GEL to People’s Power, and on February 18, 2026, they contributed the exact same amount to Ivanishvili’s party,” stated Transparency International Georgia.