Hungary has ended the state monopoly on the online sports betting market and this now makes way for the market entry of operators incorporated in the European Economic Area (EEA) ("EEA Operators").

New FDI legislation entered into force on 1 May 2021. It introduced a mandatory, suspensory, pre-closing notification obligation for acquisitions of "effective control" over companies active in the Czech Republic in industries deemed capable of threatening the security of the Czech Republic and internal or public order by parties resident outside the European Union, or whose ultimate controlling parent is resident outside the European Union.

New tool or burden?

Herbst Kinsky has advised Helu.io on its USD 10 million Series A financing round led by CommerzVentures, with the participation of Iris Capital and early-stage investor Speedinvest.

This article provides an up-to-date overview of the currently existing FDI regimes in Croatia.

New Covid regulations are in effect from 1 August 2022, raising many questions for employers. The biggest changes are that quarantine for SARS-COV-2 infected persons is no longer mandatory according to Austrian law and the reinstatement of the risk group exemption ("Risikogruppenfreistellung").

Schoenherr Head of Banking & Finance in the Czech Republic Ondrej Havlicek has been promoted to a Local Partner with the firm’s Czech office.

Bosnia and Herzegovina does not have a foreign investment screening regime comparable to those now emerging in the European Union in light of the EU FDI Screening Regulation. However, it operates an authorisation system covering the defence and media sectors.

FDI screening was for a long time a blank spot on the regulatory landscape for most countries in Central Eastern Europe (CEE). Unlike Western European Member States, relatively few countries in Central Eastern Europe had instruments to vet foreign investments and those that did exist often were of little practical consequence.

Djingov Gouginski Kyutchukov & Velichkov has advised Unicredit Bulbank, DSK Bank, and United Bulgarian Bank on their approximately EUR 160 million financing for Maxcom, Chipolino, and Maxbike.

Even though the Austrian green bond market has not been very active, issuers like Uniqa, Hypo Noe, Verbund, and the Republic of Austria have taken the first steps toward the new asset class. The main feature of such bonds is the intention and/or commitment to invest the proceeds of the issue in green projects. Most issuers initially established stand-alone green bond frameworks based on voluntarily applied market standards. An Austrian green bond standard has not yet been developed. Frameworks used in Austria are usually based on published guidelines, like the International Capital Market Association's (ICMA) Green Bond Principles. Issuers do consider the upcoming standards of the European Union, too – particularly, the EU Green Bond Standards (EUGBS) and the so-called EU Taxonomy.

Schoenherr has advised Red Bull on the establishment of a joint venture with Van Deer-Red Bull Sports Equipment founding shareholders Marcel Hirscher and Dominic Tritscher and the subsequent acquisition of Augment Ski by Van Deer-Red Bull Sports Equipment.

The numerous political, economic and social uncertainties of the last period, coupled with a significant increase in the prices of consumer goods, have led the Romanian Government to amend the existing legal framework and to regulate the commercial behaviour of companies in a stricter manner, aiming to combat potential speculative actions, but also unfair competition practices.

Schoenherr has advised Austria's Altstoff Recycling on a cooperation agreement for the construction of a new sorting plant in Upper Austria with Duales System Deutschland and Bernegger.

Schoenherr has advised Banca Intesa Beograd on providing EUR 26 million loans to Israeli Big Group company Minel Kotlogradnja Real Estate.

Dorda has advised the DigitalBridge Group on its joint acquisition with Brookfield Infrastructure and its institutional partners of a 51% stake in GD Towers from Deutsche Telekom. E+H and Latham and Watkins advised the bidding consortium of GIP, KKR, and Stonepeak. Reportedly, Allen & Overy and Morgan Lewis also advised DigitalBridge, Freshfields and Weil, Gotshal & Manges advised Brookfield Infrastructure, while, on the sell side, Gleiss Lutz, Noerr, CMS, Schoenherr, Cuatrecasas, and Freshfields advised Deutsche Telekom on the deal.

Earlier this year the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the final Guidelines on the limited network exemption (LNE) under the Payment Service Directive 2 (PSD2). Following the consultation phase initiated by the draft, further clarifications were added which are relevant to all service providers who plan to rely on the exclusion as well as those who already do.

In Hungary the Government recently issued a decree introducing extra profit taxes affecting several sectors, among others the aviation sector. Pursuant to the Governmental decree, as of 1 July 2022 an extra profittax is payable by ground handling companies based on the number of passengers departing from Hungary, with the exception of transit passengers. The new special tax is HUF 3,900 (approx. EUR 10) or HUF 9,750 (approx. EUR 25) per passenger depending on the passenger's final destination.