Pending Verdict, Constitutional Court Suspends Law on Banking Supervisory Agency

Nine-member Constitutional Court decided with 5 votes to 4 to suspend application of the disputed law on banking supervisory agency, Batumi, October 12, 2015. Photo: Constitutional Court

As an interim measure, pending final verdict, the Constitutional Court suspended application of a disputed legislation, dealing with operation of newly established banking supervisory agency.

The nine-member Constitutional Court adopted the decision on October 12 by a narrow margin of 5 votes to 4.

39 lawmakers from the opposition UNM and Free Democrats parties lodged on September 22 a joint complaint with the Constitutional Court, arguing that the newly adopted law, establishing the Financial Supervisory Agency, is unconstitutional. As an interim measure, the applicants were also requesting to suspend enforcement of the disputed law, pending court’s final verdict.

The Financial Supervisory Agency has been established after banking oversight functions were removed from the National Bank of Georgia (NBG); the head of the agency and its board members were approved by the Parliament in September.

Bill, removing banking supervisory functions from NBG and transferring them to a separate agency, was adopted by the Parliament in July, but it drew criticism from international financial institutions, business associations, opposition parties, a group of civil society organizations and from the central bank itself.

President Giorgi Margvelashvili vetoed the bill in late July, but the Parliament overturned it on September 3.

In their joint complaint, the opposition lawmakers argue that the removal of banking supervisory functions from the central bank deprives the latter of its constitutionally defined goal of supporting “stable functioning of the financial sector.”
 
The applicants also claim that the disputed law violates constitution in terms of presidential powers as the president has no role in selecting and appointing board members of the new agency, which is in charge of banking system oversight.

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