Here are the top business stories in Cyprus from the week starting November 24:
This high-octane portrayal, focused on rapid wins and flashing charts, has created a major disconnect between perception and reality.
While online hype may capture attention, the real Foreign Exchange (Forex) market is the bedrock of the global financial system.
It is neither a casino nor a path to “fast money.” Understanding this market correctly is the essential first step towards genuine financial literacy.
The organisation brought together the heads of its member federations on November 20 to 21, ahead of Cyprus assuming the rotating presidency on January 1, 2026, to outline priorities for the next institutional cycle.
BusinessEurope represents 42 federations in 36 countries, covering around 25 million companies, with Cyprus’ Employers and Industrialists Federation (Oev) described by Persson as an important voice within the group.
He said the message from companies across Europe is “absolutely clear”, pointing primarily to excessive regulatory pressure.
Despite the calendar closing in on 2026, a large share of respondents said they still intend to make the most of the remaining weeks of 2025. The survey, which polled more than 20,000 Europeans, shows that many continue to hold unused annual leave and unfulfilled plans.
Almost half of Cypriot participants (47 per cent) reported having between 7 and more than 20 days of leave left for the year, with the largest group keeping 7–10 days.
Cyprus records the highest proportion of people in this category (69 per cent), placing it ahead of Switzerland (56 per cent) and Bulgaria (55 per cent).
The award, announced this week, comes as the bank continues to expand its Private and Affluent Banking operations and align them more closely with international standards.
According to the bank, the distinction reflects its ongoing investment in comprehensive wealth management solutions, as well as its push towards more innovative products and a more personalised service model for high-net-worth clients.
It also follows Global Finance’s assessment of institutions on performance, strategy, quality of service and client-relationship management.
The observatory tracks weighted average prices for 250 basic consumer products across 400 retail outlets islandwide, drawing on daily data for food and non-food items.
According to the service, the latest assessment “reflects the stable restraint in prices”, with the annual inflation rate at 0.9 per cent in July and August, 0.7 per cent in September and 0.3 per cent in October 2025, all below zero.
Services recorded the strongest year-on-year increase in October, rising by three per cent, while petroleum products fell by 7.5 per cent, agricultural products declined by 2.6 per cent and electricity decreased by two per cent.
The document groups the main challenges under nine objectives, ranging from macroeconomic stability and fiscal discipline to financial stability, public-sector productivity and preparations for Cyprus’ EU Council Presidency in 2026.
It also includes compliance with the European Commission’s new fiscal governance framework and measures intended to support sustainable growth and job creation.
According to the ministry, each objective is backed by specific policy measures, including steps to address inflation, as the overall aim remains growth and employment.
In this context, the plan details interventions such as a targeted, graduated subsidy for electricity consumption for vulnerable households on the special tariff and for the bimonthly business tariff, covering the period January 1 to December 31, 2026.
According to the discussions, the need for strategic flexibility and know-how has never been more urgent, as technology, investment practices and the regulatory environment continue to change at unprecedented speed.
Pension funds are therefore expected to act both as pillars of security and, in addition, as levers of sustainable economic growth.
In his presentation, Savvas Christodoulou CFA, Manager of Investment Advisory at Eurobank focused on understanding investment strategies, return opportunities and risk management.
With more than 300 participants, the event was co-organised by Women in Tech Cyprus and TechIsland. The statement said the summit brought together figures from academia, business and politics to address the challenges and opportunities around gender equality in STEM.
Speakers agreed that the gender gap in STEM and AI leadership persists not because of ability but because of structural systems.
They noted that deeply rooted social norms and stereotypes reinforce insecurity and bias from early education through senior leadership. Although women contribute significantly to science and technology, only 25 per cent of seats on research boards are held by women, signalling that talent exists while the system restricts who advances.
The 2024 results had included €40.3m from the group’s share of profit from its participation in Hellenic Bank.
The investment was sold on February 10, 2025, yet no additional gain was recognised this year since the total gain had already appeared as unrealised in previous financial periods. With the sale, the unrealised gain became realised.
According to the company, this year’s profit stems mainly from investments in the CSE, while increased income from interest and rents also contributed significantly.
In her remarks, she noted that Cyprus remains dedicated to actively contributing to the collective efforts that shape the future of international shipping.
According to her intervention, the emphasis was on cooperation, resilience and continued progress within the global maritime community, particularly at a time of evolving challenges and opportunities for the sector.
Shared responsibility and coordinated action, she noted, are essential for safeguarding the sustainability, safety and competitiveness of both the international maritime sector and the oceans.
The initiative, announced at the ‘Safeguarding Cyprus’s Tourism Industry’ conference jointly organised with the Deputy Ministry of Tourism, reflects the two countries’ close cooperation on security and law enforcement, the British High Commission said.
Speaking at the event, British High Commissioner Michael Tatham noted that “34 per cent of tourists to the island were British citizens” in 2024, adding that the two countries therefore share a strong interest in protecting Cyprus’ tourism industry, which attracts visitors for its “sun, blue skies and Mediterranean climate”.
He described the platform as part of “a deep and strategic bilateral partnership, which is based on shared values and interests, including in the security sector.”
According to the ministry, the meeting covered key files ranging from the revision of the European anti-fraud architecture to talks on the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF 2028–2034), as well as ways to strengthen cooperation between Olaf and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO).
Since Cyprus will hold the presidency in the first half of 2026, Keravnos noted that the country will play a decisive role in shaping these negotiations.
He said the protection of European taxpayers’ money must form a central pillar of the new MFF, while also pointing to ongoing work on Cyprus’ first national anti-fraud strategy, due for presentation in June 2026.
According to the survey, loan demand also remained broadly stable, with net demand unchanged across all client categories, businesses, housing borrowers, and consumers.
At the same time, banks expect this steady pattern on the supply side to continue into the fourth quarter. The criteria for granting loans to both businesses and households are anticipated to remain unchanged, for all types of credit.
However, in contrast to supply expectations, banks foresee an increase in net loan demand in the fourth quarter, both from businesses and from households seeking housing, consumer or other credit.
In terms of supply developments, the CBC noted that criteria for business, housing, consumer and other household loans all remained unchanged in the third quarter.
At the association’s annual conference on Wednesday, themed “Sustainable Tourism – The Absolute One-way Street,” Vavlitis said sustainable tourism is “no longer an option, it is the only path that ensures the resilience of our destination, the cohesion of our society and the credibility of our country internationally.”
According to him, the old model based on visitor volume can no longer meet today’s demands.
Vavlitis pointed to the effects of climate change, noting that it is “already changing the balances, from the thermal burden of summer to the impacts on our coastline and infrastructure,” while pressures on natural resources, energy dependence and changing traveller expectations are pushing the sector towards a new approach.
He explained that today’s visitor seeks experiences with an environmental and social footprint, which requires Cyprus to adapt.
Traffic had reached 53,000 passengers in 2019, then fell to 5,000 in 2020 during the COVID outbreak. It rose to 29,000 in 2021, eased to 19,000 in 2022, increased to 26,000 in 2023 and dropped again last year.
Across the bloc, EU ports recorded 412.3 million passengers in 2024 as the sector continued to recover from the pandemic-related slump.
Passenger numbers were 18.8m higher than in 2023, an increase of 4.8 per cent, although traffic remained slightly below the 2019 level, which was 1.4 per cent higher.
Speaking to Cyprus News Agency (CNA), he said profitability is “the driving force for the necessary investments and the continuous modernisation of hotel units”, adding that Cyprus must keep investing in its tourism product and, above all, in the authentic Cypriot experience, which he considers the country’s strongest comparative advantage.
He also pointed to the importance of air connectivity, noting that new markets such as Poland and Israel continue to offer positive examples.
On the regulatory front, Michaelides said there is little need for major revisions to the hotel classification code, which was recently updated “with significant success”.
For many Cypriots seeking to understand online investment, the distinction between a regulated financial service, a betting platform, and an outright illegal boiler room scam has become dangerously blurred.
This lack of clarity is being exploited by criminals, making it essential for investors to understand the fundamental legal, ethical, and operational differences between these three activities.
Speaking at the Council’s founding ceremony and first general assembly, held on the sidelines of the Doers Summit 2025, Papanastasiou said the new body would offer a structured platform for companies from both markets.
It could, he noted, help businesses, investors and innovators “connect, exchange knowledge and create joint business actions that promote sustainable development, technology transfer and shared prosperity.”
He added that cooperation would now be channelled more systematically into areas ranging from energy and innovation to green technologies, tourism, maritime services and infrastructure projects.
Speaking at the event, Koumis said the Deputy Ministry is already implementing the EU agenda’s five pillars, the green and digital transitions, resilience, inclusion, skills development and updated regulation, and is doing so “with respect for business and local communities”.
Moreover, he said the government is closely observing developments in the EU and “everything that affects or may affect positively or negatively the present and future of tourism in our country”, stressing that sustainable development remains “the only way forward”.
As part of this approach, he pointed to the use of the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (RRP), noting that funds already channelled to tourism businesses and local communities are expected to exceed €20 million.
The association noted that the country is simultaneously on a path of strong recovery yet “in narrow social dead ends”, pointing to widening gaps between headline economic performance and the lived reality of thousands of households.
According to association, the economy has managed since 2012 to regain the ground lost during the financial crisis, with rising GDP, falling unemployment, stronger investment and an improved international credit profile, developments that together form an “optimistic course”.
Tourism, services, technology and construction have acted as the main pillars of growth.
The figures reflect the monthly movements in deposits and lending across households, non-financial corporations and other domestic sectors, as well as the annual rate of change in both categories.
According to the CBC, total deposits recorded a net increase of €412.3 million in October, compared with a net increase of €670.2 million in September 2025.
Finance Minister Makis Keravnos said after the cabinet meeting that the proposal amends the VAT Law of 2000–2025 and introduces a reduced rate for both public and private educational facilities.
It will apply to public schools, private schools registered under the 1971 Private Schools and Tuition Centres Law, private higher-education institutions listed under the 1996 Higher Education Schools Law, as well as organisations recognised by the Registrar when their activities are directly linked to exempt education.
He noted that the measure “promotes access to quality and modern educational facilities” and aligns with the government’s view that “education is an investment with social return”, adding that it also supports equality and social cohesion.
Across the EU, 60.2 per cent of people made an online purchase during that period.
Usage was highest in the Netherlands, where all 12 regions exceeded the EU average, and particularly in Utrecht and Flevoland, which posted the bloc’s top shares at 91.5 and 89.5 per cent respectively.
Moreover, the proportion of people ordering goods or services online was above the EU average in every region of the Czechia, Denmark, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden. This was also the case in Estonia, Cyprus, Luxembourg and Malta.
Ioannou held talks with Sweden’s civil protection leadership, Minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin and Deputy Minister Johan Berggren, before meeting Infrastructure and Housing Minister Andreas Carlson.
The visit formed part of a broader round of contacts ahead of Cyprus assuming the rotating presidency in January 2026.
During discussions on civil protection, Ioannou outlined Cyprus’ restructuring plan for the sector, saying the government aims “to improve and strengthen the level of response of the competent services to emergency incidents”, particularly natural disasters.
Swedish officials, meanwhile, noted the need to deepen cooperation among EU member states to bolster resilience nationally and collectively.
Referring to the upcoming presidency, Ioannou said that civil protection issues “will be at the centre of the discussions”, with the goal of determining the next steps in the joint European effort.
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