by Maya Aleksandrova, Attorney-at-law/Senior Associate CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was approved in 2016 but went into effect as of May 25, 2018, as it repealed and replaced the previously existing EU legal data protection framework. The … Read more

by Petar Galev, Media Analyst, Perceptica The aim of this study is to seek a correlation between a bank’s portfolio (in terms of consumer finances, such as consumer loans and mortgages) and the way its products were perceived on social … Read more

by Gregor Potocar, Managing Director of SAP SEE Southеast Europe (SEE) is a highly important region for SAP – the business software company employs more than 1600 people in this region alone, most of them in development and engineering positions. … Read more

by Julian Gikov, Konstantin Ivanov, Octavian Goga, Helena Simicevic, Raiffeisen Bank International Growth on the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market in Southeast Europe (SEE) continued to accelerate in 2017 and 2018. M&A activity in most SEE countries was influenced by … Read more

Zagorka, a leading Bulgarian brewer and part of the Heineken group, is implementing a long-term sustainability platform “Brewing a better world” which aims to focus on six key areas – protection of water resources, reducing carbon emissions, growing with communities, … Read more

By Mariyana Yaneva, Managing Editor, Renewables Now When you think of business innovations for a low-carbon economy, Southeast Europe (SEE) may not be the first thing that comes to mind but the region sure has some jewels to show to … Read more

By Tsvetan Ivanov, Business Analyst, SeeNews The European Union defines the ultimate goal of electricity market liberalisation as achieving a secure, competitive and sustainable energy supply to all EU citizens and the economy. The measures for reaching this goal are simultaneously … Read more

By Radomir Ralev With a total of 12,280 deaths attributable to poor air quality annually, Bulgaria’s mental problems seem obvious. When it comes to the ratio of deaths relative to population, Bulgaria’s situation is even more desperate, as the country is the indisputable … Read more

By Mario Tanev Chemicals producers in Southeast Europe (SEE) took back the first place in the most profitable industries ranking, ousting the rubber and rubber products manufacturers, which ended second. Serbian state-run petrochemicals producer HIP Petrohemija marked its entrance into … Read more

By Nevena Krasteva Robust domestic demand backed by growing disposable incomes, a steady investment flow and a benign international environment put the economies in Southeast Europe (SEE) on a faster-growth track in 2017. Companies in the region cashed in on … Read more

by Mario Tanev Two new entrants in this edition of SEE TOP 100 lead the rankings of the most profitable companies and the biggest money losers in 2017, a year marked by the financial woes of ailing Croatian concern Agrokor. … Read more

by Mario Tanev Against the backdrop of political and regulatory uncertainty, consistently low-interest rates and increased competition, the top insurers in Southeast Europe (SEE) booked record high gross written premiums (GWPs) and net prof- it for a second straight year … Read more

by Radomir Ralev Slovenia remained the indisputable leader in the Top 20 SEE per capita ranking, highlighting the importance of individual companies for local economies. Slovenia, an EU–member state of some two million, and the only Eurozone member state in … Read more

by Mario Tanev Romanian car parts maker Star Assembly, a unit of Germany’s Daimler, posted an incredible 353.42% rise in revenue in 2017, following the start of production of nine-speed automatic transmission for Mercedes-Benz in the middle of 2016. Daimler … Read more

by Radomir Ralev As the broad restructuring of the banking sector in Southeastern Europe (SEE) nears completion, local lenders continue to enjoy rising profitability, robust lending growth and a decline in non-performing loan (NPL) ratios. The SEE banking sector remains … Read more

  Moldova Agroindbank, also known as MAIB, is the leading systemic bank in Moldova, an Eastern European country sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine. The bank holds a market share of over 30% and maintains a nationwide network of almost 70 … Read more

  As countries in Southeast Europe (SEE) make steps towards the liberalisation of their power markets, SeeNews talks to Janez Kopac, Director of the Energy Community Secretariat and former general director for energy at the Slovenian economy ministry. Kopac acted as … Read more

by Siana Mishkova Surging profits, declining non-performing loan (NPL) ratios, and accelerating assets growth amid improving macroeconomic environment and generally upbeat sentiment – those were the key facets, depicting the performance of Southeast Europe’s banking industry in 2016 and still … Read more

By Petar Galev, Viktor Laskov, Boyan Ivanovich, Maria Simeonova, Media analysts, Perceptica The automotive market in Southeast Europe (SEE) offered some interesting dynamics in 2016, as locally produced models vied for the consumers’ attention with some of the global leaders … Read more

By Nevena Krasteva Growing domestic demand amid historically low inflation and a pick-up in private investmentand employment continued to drive economic growth in Southeast Europe (SEE) in 2016. Economic tailwinds benefited most retailers and car makers – the two industries … Read more