Central & Eastern Europe

Lithuania | Milestones
On January 1, Lithuania abandoned the litas, becoming the 19th member of the eurozone and joining Baltic peers Estonia and Latvia in the economic and monetary union.

Poland | Country Report
Although still outperforming most of its neighbors, Poland needs to reinvent itself if it wishes to sustain long-term growth.

The global financial crisis and several factors peculiar to Georgia have affected foreign direct investment inflows, but investors willing to deal with tensions and risks will find opportunities.

Romania | Newsmakers
Iohannis defeated prime minister and Social Democrat leader Victor Ponta, taking 54.5% of the vote against 45.5%. So who is Iohannis?

At a roundtable in Istanbul in September, leading figures from Turkish banks, including the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Turkey, came together to discuss developments in the economy and financial sector.

Hungary | Milestones
Hungary has witnessed the biggest street protests since the current right-wing government came to power in 2010, against the government’s plans to tax Internet traffic, the world’s first such levy.

Central & Eastern Europe | Emerging Markets Regional Review
Central and Eastern Europe has come a long way in the past 25 years, but the region must overcome some significant obstacles in 2015—particularly as Russia’s conflict with Ukraine continues.

View From The Top
Global Finance speaks to leading executives at the World’s Safest Banks.

Frontier Markets Focus | Romania
Romania aggressively pursues foreign direct investment by providing a number of incentive programs. But international investors should approach each one carefully.

Europe’s bond market grew 50% faster than the global rate during the first nine months of the year—by 4.6% year-on-year—but small foreign rating agencies jockeying for a piece of the action are crying foul.

Milestones | Commonwealth Of Independent States
In October, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia put the finishing legal touches to the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union, which comes into being on January 1, 2015.

This month the European Central Bank will start to buy euro-denominated asset-backed securities (ABS) and covered bonds in an effort to revive a market that has been sharply impaired since the financial crisis.

NEWSMAKERS | POLAND
The crop-haired, bespectacled 58-year-old is barely known outside Poland. Even within, most people know Kopacz, a former doctor and Health minister more for her loyalty to Tusk than for anything else.

FRONTIER MARKETS REPORT | KAZAKHSTAN
Kazakhstan is rife with investment opportunities, but companies must be aware of the country’s regional commitments and business climate.

REGIONAL REPORT | CENTRAL & EASTERN EUROPE
Central European countries are starting to recover, with growth accelerating in most markets. But the region’s banks still have some trials to overcome.

Events in Ukraine have changed the outlook for Russia. Now the country faces choices about its global role that could affect the rest of the world for decades. Which path will it take?

In this first installment of a two-part series, Global Finance identifies the top online corporate and consumer banks by country and then by region, according to product or service category.

FINANCE & CAPITAL | CAPITAL MARKETS
The European Central Bank’s adoption of a negative deposit rate for banks’ excess reserves [meaning they charge interest for bank reserves held at the ECB] could have a widespread impact on money markets and corporate cash-management policies.

RUSSIA/CHINA
The recent raft of Chinese investments into Russia following president Putin’s May visit to Shanghai might look like a rapid response to counter Western sanctions.

FRONTIER MARKETS REPORT | SLOVAKIA
Slovakia has moved resolutely to compete with other former Soviet-bloc nations for foreign direct investment.