Cyprus Business Now

There was a 12.7 per cent decrease in the issuance of new building permits in Cyprus during the first two months of 2023, according to data released by the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat).

According to the report, from January to February 2023, 1,143 building permits were issued, compared to 1,309 permits during the corresponding period in the previous year.

Despite the decrease in the number of permits issued, the total value of the permits increased by 2.1 per cent, and the total area covered by the permits increased by 0.9 per cent.

Furthermore, there was a slight increase of 0.3 per cent in the number of residential units included in the permits.

In February alone, municipal authorities and provincial administrations issued a total of 553 building permits.

What is more, the total value of these permits amounted to €160.8 million, and the total area covered by the permits was 147.6 thousand square meters. The permits are intended for the construction of 608 residential units.

Building permits are an important indicator of future activity in the construction sector.

The Supreme Court announced that it has dismissed an appeal by Annita Filippidou against the decision of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) to fine her €100,000 in 2014 in connection with a case involving Greek government bonds.

In a press release issued by Cyprus Popular Bank Public Co Limited, it was revealed that the case pertained to the decision made by the bank on April 28, 2014, to levy a €100,000 fine on Annita Filippidou, who served as the Group Financial Director of Cyprus Popular Bank Public Co Limited.

According to CySEC, the penalty imposed on Filippidou was a result of misleading information contained in the company’s half-yearly and annual reports, as well as her failure to ensure the accuracy, completeness, clarity, and timeliness of the content in the Company’s Employee Provident Fund Newsletter, for which she held responsibility.

With the recent decision by the Supreme Court as the second-instance jurisdiction, issued on May 10, the case has reached its conclusion, following the initial rejection of an appeal filed by Filippidou on January 13, 2016, by the same court acting as the first-instance jurisdiction.

In its initial decision, the Supreme Court, as stated by the EU, dismissed claims that Filippidou was not a responsible person for the issuer, as well as allegations of her incompetence in matters of risk and lack of relevant knowledge.

This dismissal was based on the explicit requirement of Law 190(I)/2007, which mandates the Financial Director to provide a statement in accordance with articles 9(7) and 10(7) of the same law.

“CySEC has confirmed that the Supreme Court has rejected all grounds of appeal and endorsed the approach of the Supreme Court,” the commission stated.

The Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Keve) on Monday announced that it is organising free training events on May 23-24, 2023, focused on innovative and sustainable sectors of agriculture.

The training programme, developed as part of the European CLUSTER project, covers organic agriculture, sustainable food processing, aquaponics, and hydroponics.

The initiative aims to provide education, training, and guidance to young people, women interested in training, and businesses in the agriculture and food processing industries, with the goal of increasing employment opportunities in sustainable sectors.

Interested parties may register through this link: https://forms.ccci.org.cy/clustermay2023.

Alternatively, they can contact the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry by calling 22 88 97 12 or sending an email to [email protected].

The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) ended Monday, May 15 with profits.

The general Cyprus Stock Market Index was at 109.50 points at 13:05 during the day, reflecting an increase of 0.31 per cent over the previous day of trading.

The FTSE / CySE 20 Index was at 66.24 points, representing a rise of 0.32 per cent.

The total value of transactions came up to €136,752.

In terms of the sub-indexes, the main, alternative and investment firm indexes rose by 0.36 per cent, 0.15 per cent and 1.89 per cent respectively. The hotel index remained unchanged.

The biggest investment interest was attracted by Vassiliko Cement Works Public Company (no change), Demetra Holdings (+2 per cent), A. Tsokkos Hotels (no change), Petrolina Holdings (+0.89 per cent), and the Bank of Cyprus (+1.56 per cent).