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The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the European Union’s financial markets regulator and supervisory authority, has announced the launch of the first selection procedure for a Consolidated Tape Provider covering over-the-counter derivatives, a move designed to strengthen transparency and efficiency across European financial markets. The initiative marks a significant step in the implementation of the EU’s post-trade transparency framework and is intended to

The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), together with its enforcement committee, has concluded a sanction procedure against M Capital Partners, imposing a total fine of 150,000 euros on the portfolio management company and several of its executives. The decision, rendered on December 31, 2025, targets a series of serious regulatory breaches, notably the provision of investment services without proper authorization and long-standing failures in the firm’s anti-money launder

French law enforcement authorities have dismantled a large-scale criminal organization accused of diverting nearly 15 million euros from the national vocational training fund system, uncovering an elaborate scheme that operated over a two-year period. The investigation resulted in the indictment of seven individuals in the Loire and Alpes-Maritimes regions on charges of organized fraud and money laundering. During coordinated searches, investigators seized 50,000 euros in cas

Spain’s online gambling sector maintained its strong upward trajectory in 2025, with online casino activity once again acting as the primary engine of growth, alongside rising betting revenues and increased marketing spend.   According to figures released by the General Directorate for Gambling Regulation (DGOJ) covering the three months ending 30 September 2025, gross gaming revenue (GGR) across Spain’s regulated online gambling market reached €405.36 million. This represent

Italian law enforcement authorities have concluded a major counterterrorism financing operation that led to the arrest of nine people and the confiscation of assets worth approximately €8 million, following the uncovering of a fake charity network linked to Hamas. Investigators say the structure was responsible for channeling around €7 million to the militant organisation while presenting itself as a humanitarian aid initiative. The coordinated action was led by the District

Eurobank announced this week that it has repurchased 682,000 of its own shares on the Athens Stock Exchange during the period from December 22 to December 26, 2025, as part of its authorised share buyback programme, a move intended to implement decisions taken by both its shareholders and its board of directors. According to the bank, the shares were acquired at an average price of €3.5172 per share, with the total value of the transactions amounting to €2.4 million. As a res

The Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) has stepped up its enforcement of anti-money laundering rules in the online gambling sector, issuing a formal warning to TOTO Online after identifying multiple shortcomings in the operator’s compliance with national AML legislation.   The regulator said TOTO Online failed to fully comply with obligations under the Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing (Prevention) Act, particularly in relation to the ongoing monitoring of customer r

Cyprus has once again increased the proportion of renewable energy in its gross final energy consumption, according to the latest data released by Eurostat, underscoring steady progress in the country’s energy transition at a time when the European Union as a whole continues to lag behind its long-term climate objectives.   Eurostat data show that renewable sources accounted for 25.2 per cent of gross final energy consumption across the EU in 2024. This represents a rise of 0

Hourly labour costs in Cyprus rose by 3.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, placing the country close to the European Union average and reflecting ongoing wage and cost pressures faced by employers across Europe, according to the latest figures released by Eurostat.   Data from the EU’s statistical office show that during the same period, hourly labour costs increased by 3.3 per cent in the euro area and by 3.7 per cent across the EU as a whole, compared with the third q

Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, BaFin, has levied a €9.2 million fine against N26 Bank SE, citing systemic and repeated shortcomings in the digital bank’s anti-money laundering controls. The penalty, which became legally effective in May 2024, follows an earlier €4.25 million fine imposed in 2021 for comparable violations, reinforcing concerns that the fast-growing fintech has struggled to resolve long-standing compliance weaknesses. BaFin’s intensified sup

Greece has taken another step in shedding the legacy of its sovereign debt crisis by repaying a portion of its eurozone bailout loans well ahead of schedule, a move aimed at strengthening investor confidence and reducing long-term borrowing costs.   This week, Athens completed the early repayment of €5.3bn in loans issued under the first eurozone bailout programme. These obligations were originally set to mature after 2031, with some extending into the 2040s. Paying them down

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) published its 2025 mutual evaluation of Belgium on December 16, identifying substantial deficiencies in the country’s ability to combat illicit financial activity. Although Belgium is largely compliant with international technical standards, the assessment underscores a serious lack of personnel and technological capacity within investigative and enforcement bodies. According to the report, Belgian authorities must urgently address deep-

Poland has entered what is shaping up to be its most forceful phase yet in the battle against illegal online gambling, as authorities expand enforcement well beyond traditional tools and into the promotional and financial ecosystems that sustain the grey market.   Marek Plota, managing partner at RM Legal, points to a level of coordination between law enforcement, the Ministry of Finance and the Financial Supervision Authority that has not previously been seen in the country’

Millions of people across the European Union continued to move in and out of work in mid-2025, despite overall labour market indicators suggesting relative stability.   New figures published by Eurostat this week reveal substantial flows between employment, unemployment and economic inactivity between the second and third quarters of the year, shedding light on the scale and direction of labour market movements beneath the surface.   Eurostat reported that “3.1 million unempl

Italy’s far-reaching redesign of its online gambling framework is finally taking shape, and the results point toward a future where dominant incumbents thrive while smaller operators are pushed out of the market.   When the country implemented its long-anticipated overhaul in November 2025, it did so with the precision of a government intent on restructuring — not merely regulating — its digital gambling sector.   What had been discussed and delayed for nearly five years arri

French authorities again found themselves under intense scrutiny as new hearings in the Lafarge terrorism financing case brought forward sharply conflicting accounts of what government officials knew during the Syrian conflict and when they knew it. At the center of the proceedings were discrepancies between diplomatic narratives and corporate admissions, with the court poring over exchanges between Lafarge executives and state representatives that now frame a deeper investig

Finland is preparing for one of the most significant shifts in its gambling landscape, as the country transitions from its long-standing state-controlled model to a fully regulated, licensed framework.   The Administrative Committee of the Finnish Parliament has now completed its report detailing the backbone of this reform — a reform that lawmakers expect to pass through Parliament without any further modifications.   The roadmap outlines several major milestones relevant fo

Poland’s ongoing failure to implement a comprehensive legal regime for digital assets aligned with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation has created a mounting anti-money-laundering threat, one intensified by the recent presidential veto of the enabling legislation. With this decision, Poland now stands as the lone EU member state without a MiCA-compliant framework, a position that has prompted sharp warnings from political leaders about the country’

Eurobank and National Bank of Greece (NBG) have emerged at the top of European banking rankings for return on equity, according to a pan-European report by UBS, underscoring the sustained profitability and resilience of the Greek banking sector. The findings, shared by Greek business outlet Newmoney, place both Eurobank and NBG firmly in the upper echelons of the European ranking for return on equity, reflecting gains that are “not a cyclical phenomenon but is instead the res

While the European Union continues to push for greater banking consolidation across the continent, Italy’s banking landscape tells a far more complicated story. The attempted takeover of Mediobanca by Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS), involving two of Italy’s most prominent financial institutions, has unfolded as a complex interplay of financial manoeuvres, political decisions, and judicial scrutiny. Government support for the creation of a new banking powerhouse has ignited i