New Drivers of the National Economy: Gambling and IT Sectors Emerge as Leaders of Georgia’s Private Sector

In the first quarter of 2025, Georgia’s private sector once again reflected the dynamic transformation of the country’s economic structure and a shift toward new priorities. According to the latest report released by Geostat, the total turnover of the private sector reached 55.9 billion GEL at the beginning of the year, representing a 14.5% increase compared to the same period last year — an indicator of large-scale economic activity.

The most significant transformation within the structure of the national economy occurred in the gambling sector. For the first time, this field surpassed the trade sector in turnover and rose to the #1 position — reaching 20.1 billion GEL in bets, with a growth rate exceeding 22%. It is important to note that this figure includes both online and traditional casinos and reflects the total volume of placed bets. In practice, this means that the largest financial flows in the Georgian economy now move toward entertainment and gambling, posing entirely new challenges for the country’s financial ecosystem, social environment, and regulatory policies.

The trade sector shifted to second place in turnover — 18.3 billion GEL with 7% annual growth. Although this sector has traditionally been the backbone of the economy, the activation of new players has led to a partial reduction in its relative weight. The turnover in the manufacturing industry declined this year by 4%, reaching 4 billion GEL, highlighting a certain stagnation in this sector.

A positive trend is visible in the construction sector — 2.8 billion GEL with 5% growth suggests that infrastructure projects remain one of the key drivers of economic growth. However, the most dynamic and visibly growing sector in the first quarter of 2025 was IT, information, and communication, whose turnover nearly doubled (a 96% annual increase), exceeding 2.65 billion GEL. This growth is primarily attributed to the global export of IT services and confirms that Georgia is increasingly leveraging its geographic and human resources for the digital economy.

The transport and logistics sector recorded a 14% growth, with turnover reaching 2.4 billion GEL, indicating the impact of developing international trade corridors and ports. The energy sector showed a 9% increase, reaching a turnover of 1.7 billion GEL, which also reflects growth in green energy and infrastructure investments.

Among other sectors, particularly high growth was observed in healthcare (+29%), education (+24%), administrative and support services (+26%), mining and quarrying (+23%), and accommodation services (+20%). This dynamic shows that the expansion of economic activity is no longer dependent solely on traditional industries, and new economic centers are emerging within the country.

Overall, the private sector indicators in early 2025 reflect deep transformations underway within the economy: gambling and the IT sector are rapidly reshaping the financial landscape of the country, trade and industry are partially ceding growth momentum to new sectors, while healthcare, education, and logistics are becoming new sources of expansion. This trend reveals both new opportunities and emerging challenges for Georgia’s economic future, particularly in balancing sectors, ensuring stable development, and maintaining long-term sustainability.