The Higher Regional Court (OLG) of Cologne ruled on May 23, 2025 regarding the permissibility of using personal data for training artificial intelligence (AI) by Meta (Case No. 15 UKl 2/25). The core issues...

Die Europäische Kommission hat ein umfassendes Legislativpaket zur Einführung der EU Inc vorgelegt – einer optionalen, EU-weit einheitlichen Gesellschaftsrechtsform als 28. Regime. Für Finanzdienstleister wirft dieser Vorschlag grundlegende Fragen zur Bankfähigkeit, Investierbarkeit und Marktinfrastrukturkompatibilität auf und berührt die gesamte Finanzierungskette von der Gründung bis zur Insolvenz.

On June 25, 2025, the European Commission adopted the Clean Industrial State Aid Framework (CISAF). It is intended to support the objectives of the Clean Industrial Deal...

On 19 December 2024 the European Securities and Markets Aut hority (ESMA) published a consultation paper on draft guidelines...

Ireland's 2026 EU Presidency signals a decisive shift in European financial services regulation, prioritizing competitiveness and delivery over deliberation. With the Savings and Investment Union and Digital Euro...

On April 23, 2025, the European Commission imposed fines of EUR 500 million (Apple) and EUR 200 million (Meta) for violations of Regulation...

The European Securities and Markets Authority has issued a public statement clarifying that event contracts and prediction markets with binary outcomes fall under existing EU-wide prohibitions on binary options when marketed to retail clients.

Die Bundesbank hat ihre Erläuterungen zum außenwirtschaftlichen Meldewesen aktualisiert und dabei wichtige Klarstellungen zur Meldepflicht für Kryptowerte vorgenommen. Welche praktischen Anforderungen ergeben sich für Unternehmen und Privatpersonen bei grenzüberschreitenden Kryptotransaktionen? Die neuen Regelungen konkretisieren insbesondere die Behandlung von Börsen- und Plattformgeschäften sowie die Abgrenzung meldepflichtiger Übertragungen.

The European Securities and Markets Authority has issued a definitive statement clarifying that the MiCAR transitional period expires on 1 July 2026, after which any entity providing crypto-asset services to EU clients without proper authorization will be in breach of EU law. This regulatory deadline represents a fundamental legal transformation of the EU crypto-asset market, affecting business models, contractual relationships, board exposure, and enforcement risk for crypto-asset service providers.

On 7 December 2023 the three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) comprised of the European Banking Authority (EBA), the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA)...

As sustainability criteria evolve from voluntary commitments into hard-edged determinants of corporate finance, companies seeking refinancing in distress situations must now present credible...

On 1 January 2026, the Berne Financial Services Agreement (BFSA) entered into force. The BFSA is a bilateral treaty between Switzerland and the UK, designed to facilitate cross-border wholesale financial services...

BaFin has released a second consultation draft of the WpI MaRisk circular, introducing more proportionate risk management requirements specifically tailored for small and medium-sized investment firms. The revised framework aims to reduce regulatory complexity while maintaining alignment with MiFID II and related EU regulations, with stakeholder comments due by June 17, 2026.

The European Commission has published its first report on Directive (EU) 2019/1153, mapping the evolving framework for law-enforcement access to financial intelligence across the EU. While the report defers decisions on expanding data access, it signals a shift toward faster, more standardized cross-border information sharing through interconnected account registers and structured transaction formats. Financial institutions face mounting pressure to ensure their data governance, production capabilities, and

On 11 March 2022, the European Banking Authority published a supervisory statement reminding financial institutions that they ensure compliance with sanctions and other restrictive measures...

As explored in earlier Client Alerts,Show Footnote the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has a lot of priorities on its plate. In a letter dated 3 March but released 6 March 2025 (the 2025 Prioritisation Letter)...

EU financial supervisory authorities have published their 2025 annual reports, revealing a fundamental shift from framework development to operational enforcement and implementation monitoring. The reports demonstrate how the European Banking Authority, ESMA, EIOPA, ECB-SSM, and Single Resolution Board are moving toward data-driven supervision, systematic DORA monitoring, and enhanced cross-sectoral coordination. What does this transition from rule construction to demonstrable, peer-comparable outcomes mean

The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) became applicable on August 12, 2026, catching many companies off guard during the summer holiday period. With the European Commission releasing crucial FAQs just one week before the deadline, businesses now face immediate compliance challenges including determining their producer status, managing supplier documentation requests, and navigating complex conformity requirements under tight resource constraints.

Die BaFin hat ihre aufsichtlichen Anforderungen an die Nutzung virtueller IBANs verschärft und fordert strengere Compliance-Kontrollen zur Bekämpfung von Geldwäsche und Terrorismusfinanzierung.

The European Banking Authority and New York State Department of Financial Services have signed a groundbreaking Memorandum of Understanding establishing a formal framework for transatlantic supervisory cooperation on stablecoin regulation. This agreement enables structured information exchange, cross-border inspections, and emergency coordination between EU and US regulators overseeing entities engaged in stablecoin activities under MiCAR and New York's regulatory framework.