Read the NBG official exchange rate correctly

Illustration: conceptual editorial artwork, not a photograph or map of this place or service.

The National Bank of Georgia publishes two pages that look like exchange-rate tools but answer different questions. The official rate page shows GEL rates for foreign currencies and says the rate is indicative. The separate currency-rates page compares commercial banks' current buy and sell rates and lets a reader filter by channel, customer type, payment date and amount. Pick the page before reading the number.

Start with the official-rate table

On the official page, find the currency code and the foreign-currency amount named beside it, then read the GEL rate for that unit. The unit matters: some rows show one unit, while others show ten, one hundred or more. A number beside “100 Japanese Yen,” for example, refers to that stated quantity, not to one yen. Keep the row label with the value if you copy it into a note or calculation.

The NBG describes the USD/GEL rate as a weighted average of registered spot trades on its interbank platform over a defined business-day calculation period. It announces that rate for the next day. The NBG says rates for other currencies are determined from international or issuer-country market rates using cross-currency calculations. Its public explanation says official rates are published no later than 17:00 on the calculation day.

Read “official” without assuming “cash price”

The NBG calls the official exchange rate indicative. Its page says use is not obligatory except where relevant legal requirements apply. That is why a bank, exchange service or card transaction may show a different figure. The official page is a reference-rate publication. It does not promise a price for buying cash, a card conversion quote or a future exchange-rate direction.

Use the other page for a bank quote comparison

If your question is “what are banks currently offering for this transaction?”, use the separate commercial-bank comparison. It labels buy and sell rates and provides filters for bank, branch or internet channel, user type, date and amount. NBG says the data comes from commercial banks and can change, so check the chosen bank's own terms before a transaction. Do not read the best highlighted bank quote as the NBG official rate.

• For a published dated reference, use the official-rate page and preserve the currency unit and applicable date.
• For a possible bank exchange, choose the commercial-bank page and match the channel, customer type, date and amount.
• For an explanation of how the official rate is determined, use NBG's foreign-exchange methodology page.
• Do not use either page to forecast a currency move or make an investment decision.

A reliable note records the page name, currency unit, displayed date and the question the rate answers. Without those labels, a GEL number is easy to mistake for a bank's offer.