Levan Gachechiladze

Receiving two rounds of financing amounting to $150 thousand and $5+ million over the span of several years, Gachechiladze secured cross-border capital investment that at that time was unprecedented both in significance and size.

The ultimate result of his effort was introduction of market economy mindset to the Georgian wine industry and its eventual shift towards quality and premium-priced produce.

[8] In September 2000 he left the ruling party and co-founded the 'New Faction', a group led by David Gamkrelidze.

Gachechiladze had previously served as chairman of the Economic Policy Committee, and in this capacity initiated numerous reforms targeted at transitioning the country from planned to market economy.

The earliest exit polls, carried out by the group of non-governmental organisations and mass-media, suggested the victory of Mikheil Saakashvili with more than half of all the votes (52.5%).