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Untapping the Potential of Cross-Border E-Commerce A wider choice of products, at more competitive prices and a market of up to 70 million online cross-border buyers were promised by the European Commission1 when it touted its proposals for the Digital Content Directive2 andSale of Goods Directive3 back in December 2015. Almost six years and several […]...

Improving efficiency and transparency In 2018, Erste Group Bank AG carried out the first fully digital, paperless issue of a borrower’s loan note (Schuldscheindarlehen) via a blockchain platform in Europe. Wolf Theiss provided legal advice to Erste Group on this pioneering transaction. Since then, a number of such transactions have been carried out on “Dealfabrix”, […]...

AI can’t just be plugged in, you have to give it what it needs first: data & training Artificial intelligence is already reshaping business processes across industries, some faster than others. It is a mythical term, laden with our expectations that it will boost our quality of life and solve many problems. For business users […]...

Sweeping new regulation may unnecessarily restrict AI development On 21 April 2021, the European Commission published a proposal of pristine legal framework in the form of a Regulation on Artificial Intelligence (“AI Regulation”) to govern the development, placing on the market and usage of artificial intelligence (AI) systems within the European Union. The twin objectives […]...

Rise of the crypto market Lately the crypto market has made its way back into the focus of the finance sector, with all of the popular crypto currencies reaching an all-time high one after another and the market crashing shortly thereafter. In addition, a constantly rising number of businesses is or already has implemented blockchain-based […]...

Much to unpack in a single phrase It’s 2021 and by now the (former) buzzword Legal Tech is already an old shoe – hardly anyone in the legal arena has not heard of it and many already had touchpoints with the topic. However, the question still remains:What exactly is Legal Tech and how can it […]...

Rise of the crypto market Lately the crypto market has made its way back into the focus of the finance sector, with all of the popular crypto currencies reaching an alltime high one after another and the market crashing shortly thereafter. In addition, a constantly rising number of businesses is or already has implemented blockchain-based […]...

Die neue Restrukturierungsordnung in Österreich Am 22.2.2021 wurde der Ministerialentwurf zum Restrukturierungs- und InsolvenzRichtlinie-Umsetzungsgesetz (RIRL-UG) veröffentlicht. Das Gesetz ist die mit Spannung erwartete Umsetzung der Restrukturierungs-RL. Neben der Einführung einer neuen Restrukturierungsordnung (RO) soll u.a. die Insolvenzordnung (IO) angepasst werden. Die Begutachtungsfrist endete am 6.4.2021; mit dem In-Kraft-Treten ist im dritten Quartal 2021 zu rechnen. […]...

Developments in the Covid-19 era In the context of the global pandemic in 2020, which exposed the vulnerabilities with excessive reliance on externalised foreign supply chains, EU Member States (including many in the CEE/SEE region) have accelerated the adoption of local legislation aimed at restricting foreign direct investment (“FDI”) into certain critical infrastructure1 and critical […]...

Deep changes in the global real estate market Panta rhei – „Everything flows“. When the Greek philosopher Heraclitus created this famous phrase around 500 B.C., it was certainly not the world of real estate that he had in mind. Nowadays, however, his quote aptly describes the developments that affect this critical investment class, which is […]...

Opportunities not to be missed Failing to see the wood for the trees in 2021 and therefore missing investment opportunities due to fear of the unknown may prove costly for investors and entrepreneurs. Economic forecasts are now negatively (and possibly inaccurately) skewed downwards by the uncertain nature of the pandemic and the current surge of […]...

CEE continues to rise despite pandemic Growth arc long predates Covid-19 and will continue past it Last year was a training course in adaption and agility, and there were many lessons learned in CEE and across the world. It. However, businesses and investors in CEE can continue to look forward to numerous opportunities in the […]...