18 Aug 2022

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Open Balkans

The Open Balkans initiative aims to encourage and facilitate cooperation among the Balkans countries. The initiative was conceived across the Balkans, where the different cities symbolize the various stages in the development of the Open Balkans initiative.  In this article, we present the chronology of building ties between the countries by virtually visiting six key locations. (Note: If you decide to visit these towns, we advise you to create your itinerary on Google Maps,  not by this article :D). The first location associated with the birth of the Open Balkans project (as we know it today) is Novi Sad, and […]

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15 Aug 2022

NBS – New Measures to Curb Inflation

As we discussed last week, the National Bank of Serbia (“NBS”) decided to hike the interest rate to 3%. In addition to this decision, several other measures were introduced aimed at reducing the growing inflationary pressures affecting the economy of Serbia.  One of the measures is the decision that all banks that have increased their fees for payment services since January 1, 2021, will reduce those fees by 30% starting September 1 or reduce these fees prior levels.  According to the NBS, the aggregate benefit of this measure to individual clients will amount to 7 billion dinars. In addition, NBS […]

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15 Aug 2022

NBS – a new package of measures to preserve the Serbia’s monetary system

As we discussed last week, the National Bank of Serbia (“NBS”) decided to hike the interest rate to 3%. t One of the measures is the decision that all banks that have increased their fees for payment services since January 1, 2021, will reduce those fees by 30% starting September 1 or reduce these fees prior levels.  According to the NBS, the aggregate benefit of this measure to individual clients will amount to 7 billion dinars. In addition, NBS introduced a current account with basic services.  This decision caps the monthly maintenance fee for an account which includes basic services […]

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12 Aug 2022

EU Parliament Adopts Digital Services Package

Despite rapid developments in technology and business, EU laws on e-commerce have not been updated for more than 20 years.  To keep up with the digital revolution, the EU Parliament („EP“) adopted the Digital Markets Act (“DMA”) and the Digital Services Act (“DSA”).  The  DMA was adopted in July 2022 and it will start to apply at the beginning of 2023.  As for the DSA, it is expected to be implemented in early 2024. Why was the DMA adopted? This act provides a framework that is tailored to the major influence of the largest digital companies, known as “gatekeepers” – […]

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11 Aug 2022

NBS Hikes Interest Rates Again

The Executive Board of Serbia’s Central Bank (“NBS”) voted today to raise key interest rates by 25 basis points to 3%, in a fifth hike this year. The credit facility rate is now 4% and the deposit facility rate is 2%, all increased by 25 basis points. The Executive Board decided that an additional tightening of the monetary policy is necessary, and that year-on-year inflation is expected to peak during the current quarter and then start declining.  In conditions of continued cost pressures and growth of imported inflation beyond all expectations, the NBS is aiming for a balanced approach that […]

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09 Aug 2022

Gecić Law contributes to TerraLex Cross-Border Guide to Crypto Assets

Gecić Law is proud to announce that it has contributed to the inaugural edition of the TerraLex Cross-Border Guide to Crypto Assets for the jurisdictions of Montenegro and Serbia.  The guide is now live and is free to access.  This confirms our team’s pioneering expertise in one of the hottest fields of law today. As the exclusive member of TerraLex in the jurisdictions, Gecić Law is a regular contributor to the TerraLex Cross-Border Guides in a broad array of practices. The guides are unique as they offer a comparative perspective on legislation across fields and jurisdictions throughout the world, offered by world-class […]

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08 Aug 2022

Google Play Store Under the Radar of the EU’s Competition Watchdog

The European Commission’s (Commission) antitrust enforcers are investigating Google Play Store.  The antitrust enforcers are now looking into the restrictions Google has placed on the Play Store app market. According to the sources, the Commission has sent a confidential questionnaire to several companies that use the Play Store.   Most of the questions are about the billing terms and fees they must pay to this tech giant to be listed in its application catalog. Any purchase made inside an application (in-app) that has been downloaded from the Play Store is subject to a 15% to 30% fee that Google charges.  Publishers […]

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04 Aug 2022

Investing in the pharmaceutical sector – Serbia

As part of our series on investment opportunities in Serbia, this time we delve into the pharmaceutical industry.  The coronavirus pandemic demonstrated that Serbia has significant potential in the sector that is still running strong.  Unlike other industries, the pharmaceutical industry has been showing unprecedented growth. The high demand for medicines, supplements, basic hygiene products and disinfectants, and other medications has shown that there is a strong need for businesses and institutions that will meet this demand.  In that sense, Serbia’s pharmaceutical industry showed high efficiency and managed to establish and maintain regular supply, stable production, and unhindered imports as […]

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28 Jul 2022

The Personal Data Protection Act Revisited

Although the Personal Data Protection Act (“Act“) has been in effect for four years, it seems that its provisions have not yet been fully implemented in practice, nor have all companies in Serbia fully adapted to them. Non-compliance with the obligations prescribed by the Act especially starts hurting when inspections are carried out by the Commissioner, and a new round is being announced. So, let’s take a moment to revise what companies should pay attention to when it comes to complying with the Act. Back to basics The general obligations of companies are contained in the principles of the Act. […]

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21 Jul 2022

A Wrecking Ball in a UK Demolition Cartel’s Courtyard?

We recently wrote about bid rigging and the new guidelines issued by the Serbian NCA on detecting this illegal activity in public procurement procedures.  Here we look into an interesting case that illustrates how bid rigging occurs and is dealt with in the United Kingdom.  After it had initiated an antitrust probe in 2019, The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) came across a cartel activity of 10 demolition companies that plotted to rig bids for demolition and asbestos-removal contracts worth more than £150 million.  The contracts in question were the result of tenders organized by the MET Police Training […]

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