The Federal Labour Court has made clear that, to trigger the presumption of sex-based pay discrimination, it is sufficient to compare oneself with a single, better-paid colleague of the opposite sex performing the same or work of equal value.

On September 26, 2021, the 20th German Bundestag of the Federal Republic of Germany was elected.

Die zentralen europäischen Finanzaufsichtsbehörden haben ihre Jahresberichte für 2025 veröffentlicht und signalisieren damit einen fundamentalen Strategiewechsel in der EU-Finanzaufsicht. Der Fokus verlagert sich von der Entwicklung neuer Regulierungsrahmen hin zu datengetriebener Überwachung, praktischer Umsetzungskontrolle und konsequenter Durchsetzung bestehender Vorschriften. Für Finanzunternehmen wird die nachweisbare Wirksamkeit ihrer Kontrollen im EU-weiten Vergleich zum

The European Union's Market-in-Sustainable-Products (MiSP) initiative enters a critical political negotiation phase with over 1,900 proposed amendments that could fundamentally reshape the EU's market architecture.

The European Central Bank's Single Supervisory Mechanism has completed a comprehensive review of approximately 130 supervisory publications, discontinuing around 40 documents and introducing clearer classifications for its guidance.

For now, all eyes are tilted to Berlin to see how the coalition construction challenge will play out and what makes it into any coalition agreement.

The European Accessibility Act and its national implementation in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, represent significant legislative efforts to harmonise accessibility requirements related for goods and services within the EU Single Market.

The EU's Market in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR) became fully operational as of 30 December 2024. As explored in PwC Legal's EU RegCORE' series covering developments across the "EU's Digital Single Market...

A Paris civil court has drawn a clear line on the limits of environmental marketing by large energy companies.

On 14 December 2023, ESMA, published a detailed discussion paper on the digitalisation of retail investment services and related investor protection considerations (the RIS DP) Show Footnote.

Germany's transition period for Payment for Order Flow (PFOF) has ended, and BaFin has issued detailed supervisory guidance outlining prohibited circumvention structures and expectations for PFOF-free business models. The regulator applies an economic substance test that looks beyond mere form, requiring firms to justify fees in vertically integrated groups and trace orders through intermediary chains back to retail clients.

The European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee has published two draft reports on the Market Integration and Supervision Package that significantly expand the European Commission's proposals, introducing comprehensive direct ESMA supervision over all EU CCPs and CSDs, direct oversight of significant asset management groups, and a statutory competition mandate for ESMA. These far-reaching changes to EU capital markets supervision architecture will fundamentally impact regulated firms' supe

The European Parliament's ECON Committee has published two draft reports on the Market Integration and Supervision Package that significantly expand ESMA's direct supervisory powers...

Germany's financial regulator BaFin has issued new supervisory guidance on virtual IBANs, addressing concerns about transparency in payment flows and beneficial ownership while affirming that vIBANs remain legitimate payment infrastructure. The communication requires firms to demonstrate that their governance, customer transparency and monitoring arrangements have kept pace with technological innovation, particularly in relation to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing controls.

On 15 January 2026, the German Federal Government reached a general agreement with the European Commission on crucial elements of the long-awaited power plant strategy.

The European Central Bank has articulated a comprehensive vision for the EU's digital finance architecture, positioning deeper financial integration as essential for Europe's economic future. This analysis examines the ECB's technical stance on the Market Integration and Supervision Package, which proposes to transfer significant supervisory powers to ESMA while addressing persistent gaps in cross-border capital allocation.

On June 25, 2025, the European Commission published new requirements for capacity mechanisms. Member states must take these requirements...

As we look towards the future, governments around the world face the daunting task of regulating and guiding transformative changes in various sectors. Key regulatory subjects include...

Germany's Crypto Markets Communication RegulationShow (Kryptomärktemitteilungs-Verordnung - KMMV) was announced in the Federal Law Gazette on 28 August 2025 based on the regulatory authority granted...

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