Finance & Trade

G7 Ministers Urge Implementation of Mandatory Climate Disclosure

April 19, 2023

The European Commission has proposed a directive on regulating 'Green Claims' laying out rules on the verification of voluntary environmental claims and environmental labels used by traders that market products to EU consumers.
EU Vote Ahead for Financial Firms on Human Rights ‘Due Diligence'

April 06, 2023

Financial services companies would be required to take action if their clients were failing to protect human rights and the environment, a preliminary deal due to be voted on later this month by a panel of European Union lawmakers.
Italian Privacy Regulator Bans ChatGPT over Alleged Privacy Violations

April 05, 2023

The Italian national data protection authority ordered a temporary ban on ChatGPT as it investigates OpenAI, the U.S. company behind the artificial intelligence tool, on their processing the data of Italian users and respecting the EU's landmark privacy law, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
France to Regulate Social Media Influencers in the name of Protecting Consumers

March 16, 2023

The French government has taken notice of the power and market value of social media influencers whose global worth was over €15 billion in 2022, setting a plan to regulate their commercial work, placing them under the same rules as traditional media.
Significant Expansion of Corporate Sustainability Reporting for Companies Active in the EU

March 15, 2023

Since coming into full force in January 2023, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) has significantly expanded the existing EU regime for non-financial disclosure requirements currently governed by the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD), requiring large public and private companies with activities in the EU (including U.S. entities) to report on how their business model affects their sustainability, and on how external sustainability factors influence their activities.
Biden splits EU’s top ranks over China

March 15, 2023

As pressure mounts from U.S. President Joe Biden to take a more aggressive stance towards China, a split is emerging amongst European Union leaders over the bloc’s policy towards Beijing with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen siding with Washington, while Council chief Charles Michel wants to avoid confrontation.
EU Commission, Council of EU and EU Parliament Ban TikTok over Security Concerns

March 01, 2023

Following the recent TikTok ban in the European Commission and Council of EU, The European Parliament has now banned the use of the social media app on staff devices and strongly recommend that MEPs delete it from their personal phones over increasing security concerns with China.
Europe’s Energy In Good Shape Despite Cutting Russian Supplies

February 17, 2023

According to the European Commission assessment, despite early fears of energy shortages caused by eliminating Russian pipeline supplies, Europe is on course to get through winter with its vital gas storage facilities more than half full, keeping EU economies on track.
Financial Firms in UK and the EU Under Pressure to Comply with Diverging ESG Rules

February 13, 2023

Despite global standard-setters' best efforts to create universal ESG standards, firms will likely need to adapt to an increasingly different set of requirements in the UK versus Europe.
The European Commission Proposes Exit of 27 Member States from ECT

February 08, 2023

The European Commission has proposed a the exit of all 27 member states from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), which covers the main aspects of trade in energy goods, investment, transit and efficiency, arguing that an « unmodernised ECT » is not in line with the EU’s policy on investment protection or the European Green Deal.