On March 4, one of the co-founders, and former Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Georgian TBC Bank, Mamuka Khazaradze, presented a defense against the allegations against the Bank to the Budget and Finance Committee of the Georgian Parliament. 

In his speech, he provided details regarding the "attacks" against the TBC Bank by politicians and the authorities since June 2018. He also mentioned an alleged "threatening letter" from the Minister of the Interior of Georgia, Giorgi Gakharia. Gakharia is said to have sent it to Khazaradze during the recent presidential elections. According to Khazaradze, he had been threatened with the "destruction of the bank's reputation" should the requirements mentioned in the letter not be met. The former chairman of TBC Bank's supervisory board said that he had informed the Prosecutor Generalship of this letter but that it had not taken any action. The Georgian Prosecutor General's Office denied this information and stated that it had not received a letter from Khazaradze. But the banker insists on his claims: "I have sent a copy of the letter to the Prosecutor Generalship. The original was sent to London for an expert analysis, "Khazaradze told journalists as he left the city courthouse. There he was heard on 5 March on his allegations against the Interior Minister.

During the parliamentary hearing on March 4, Khazaradze also accused the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) of filing politically motivated fines on the TBC Bank for allegedly violating conflict of interest provisions - initially over 10,000 Lari (US $ 3,700) ) and then over 1 million Lari ($ 375,000). Khazaradze told members of the Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee that the head of the National Bank, Koba Gvenetadze, had rejected a personal investigation into the first fine,  mentioning "politicians" as the reason. "It became clear to me that this man was not independent, that this institution was not independent in their decisions," said Khazaradze. He also stated that the head of the National Bank had even asked him to challenge the first fine in court, suggesting that Gvenetadze had been "in a hopeless situation".

Reactions to Khazaradze's allegations

The Minister of the Interior of Georgia, Giorgi Gakharia, dismissed the accusation that he had sent a threatening letter to the co-founder of the TBC Bank, calling Khazaradze's accusations "chatter".

The opposition party "European Georgia" called for establishing a commission of inquiry to clarify the allegations of money laundering against the TBC bank. "The TBC Bank is the country's leading financial institution, while the Anaklia deep-water port is of strategic importance to Georgia's economy and security. Questions of strategic importance should be reviewed by the commission of inquiry, "said one of the party leaders, Davit Bakradse.

The member of the Georgian Supreme Judicial Council, Anna Doldize, sees the case as a "bomb blast" within the governing party of Georgia. She said that there is no trustworthy state institute to answer citizens' questions. "Neither the prosecutor nor the court can answer these questions. There are also questions regarding the politicization of the National Bank, "said Dolidze. She also proposed convening a parliamentary commission of inquiry to clarify the situation of the bank.

On March 5, more than 15 Georgian NGOs issued a joint statement stating that an "informal group" had concentrated power in Georgia and used it to fulfill their own interests and goals. According to the statement, this tendency is incompatible with the principles of democratic governance and poses a threat to the constitutional order. The NGOs expressed the hope that law enforcement authorities will investigate Khazaradze's remarks "in a fair and impartial manner" and called on Parliament to respond appropriately. "We urge Parliament to set up a commission of inquiry, which will examine the issue in depth at public meetings," the statement said.

The UN coordinator in Georgia, Louisa Vinton, described the case of the TBC bank as a test of Georgia's legal system and business environment. "We expect the process to be transparent and reliable. This is important because the Georgians have been working diligently to create such a business environment, "Vinton said.

Georgia's Attorney Generalship announced on January 9, 2019, that it had opened an investigation against the TBC bank for potential money laundering and "other tortious acts". "We started the money laundering investigation on August 2, 2018. The case concerns developments in 2008 when LTD Samgori M and LTD Samgori Trade received a $ 17 million loan from the bank in a timely manner without providing real estate, "the prosecutor's statement said.

According to the statement, the co-founder of the TBC bank, Mamuka Khazaradze, and another bank representative, Badri Japaridze, received the same amount of credit as private individuals from the TBC bank at the time the money was deposited into the banks' accounts. In addition, the prosecutor said, the bank had written off the companies' debts at the end of 2008 without giving a reason and completely exempted the companies from any financial obligations to the bank in 2012.

On 13 February, the Georgian National Bank demanded the resignation of the chairman of TBC Bank. A week later, on February 21, Khazaradze announced his retirement from the bank's supervisory board. This decision was taken to avoid negative effects on the investment climate in the country, Khazaradze said.