The AI Cyprus Expo will return to Limassol in April of next year, with its organisers aiming to turn the event into a regional platform for applied artificial intelligence and business collaboration across the Eastern Mediterranean.

Empactio, the company behind the expo, spoke exclusively to the Cyprus Mail about its plans to expand the event, the development of its technology platform and its ambition to position Limassol as a gateway for applied AI.

Empactio was founded by Maxim Monzer and Briken Bufi, neither of whom came from the traditional events industry.

Briken’s background is in sales, operations and growth, having spent more than a decade building and training startups, while also being founder and CEO of Sainni AI and Aella Creative Force.

The other founder, Maxim, has a background in architecture and an MBA, and has worked across startups, fintech and events, including as founder and CEO of Kartatek.

Cyprus and China have put maritime cooperation back at the centre of their bilateral agenda, with Shipping Deputy Minister Marina Hadjimanolis and China’s new ambassador Yang Yundong discussing seafarers, maritime education and coordination at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) ahead of her planned visit to China.

During a courtesy meeting, Hadjimanolis and Yang reviewed areas of mutual maritime interest, including the longstanding agreement governing shipping relations between the two countries and the scope for closer cooperation in maritime education.

The wellbeing of seafarers was also discussed, an area Cyprus has placed increasingly high on its shipping agenda this year alongside training and the future maritime workforce.

The relationship has a formal framework stretching back more than three decades. Cyprus and China signed an Agreement on Maritime Transport on August 29, 1990, while a protocol amending the agreement was signed in December 2003 and later entered into force in 2005.

Cyprus recorded the largest fall in tourist accommodation nights in the EU during the first half of 2026, down 7.71 per cent year on year, according to a Destination Finder analysis of Eurostat data.

Romania followed with a decline of 6.71 per cent, while the EU as a whole recorded 1.321 billion overnight stays, up 1.7 per cent from the same period in 2025.

Cyprus remained under pressure in June, when accommodation nights fell 6.78 per cent from a year earlier. Nights spent by non-residents declined 6.04 per cent, while those by residents fell 19.16 per cent.

Non-residents accounted for 95.06 per cent of all accommodation nights in Cyprus during the month.

Tourist arrivals also fell during the first half, with Cyprus receiving around 1.66 million visitors between January and June, down 10.1 per cent from the same period last year.

The Cyprus Association of Large Investment Projects and Invest Cyprus agreed to step up cooperation on attracting and facilitating foreign direct investment, following talks between the two organisations this week.

The meeting centred on possible joint initiatives to bring further investment to Cyprus, with particular emphasis on projects capable of delivering a significant economic and development impact.

In that context, the two sides discussed making greater use of their respective expertise and international networks to promote investment opportunities in Cyprus more effectively and strengthen the country’s competitiveness as an international business centre.

The association also used the meeting to emphasise the role of large developments in supporting economic growth and employment, as well as improving infrastructure and services.

Cyprus’ resale property market was worth €727.2 million from 3,202 transactions in the first half of 2026, with substantial differences between districts in terms of prices, transaction volumes and the types of properties changing hands, according to Landbank Analytics.

The analysis found that Nicosia accounted for the largest share of transactions, while Limassol generated the highest total value and the highest residential price per square metre.

Larnaca offered lower entry prices among the major markets, Paphos combined relatively lower transaction volumes with comparatively high values, while government-controlled Famagusta remained a smaller but distinct market.

Nicosia recorded 1,155 transactions worth €195.7m, representing 36.1 per cent of national transaction volume and 26.9 per cent of total value.

Shipping risks at two of the Middle East’s key maritime passages returned to focus on Wednesday after an unexplained explosion near Iran’s Qeshm Island, while the Houthis claimed to have downed a Saudi drone close to Bab el-Mandeb.

There was no indication that the two incidents were connected. Together, however, they add to the pressure on two waterways already facing disruption from the wider conflict, leaving shipowners, energy traders and governments watching developments particularly closely.

Iran’s official IRNA news agency said the sound of an explosion had been reported near Qeshm, in the southern province of Hormozgan, and appeared to have come from the direction of the sea, according to reports citing the agency.

No rocket or missile was reported to have struck the island and there were no immediate reports of damage. Local authorities had not given an explanation for the blast by Wednesday morning.

The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has moved closer to tightening safety requirements for ships using methanol and ethanol as fuel, after completing a major revision of its interim guidance while continuing work on other low-flashpoint fuels.

The work was carried out during the 12th session of the IMO’s Sub-Committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC 12), held in London from September 14 to 18, with alternative fuels taking a prominent place in the discussions.

INTERTANKO, which participated in the session’s Working Group 1, said the talks focused on further developing the safety framework governing alternative fuels as shipping increasingly looks beyond conventional oil-based propulsion.

Cypriot beverage company Keo plc saw its first-half profit fall to €2.97 million in 2026, as weaker sales fed through to operating earnings, although its gross profit margin improved from a year earlier.

Net profit was down from €3.23m in the first six months of 2025, a decline of about 8 per cent.

Turnover also moved lower, falling 3.13 per cent from €33.4m a year earlier, continuing the softer sales picture seen by the group over the past year.

Gross profit, however, was broadly unchanged at €11.3m, allowing Keo to improve its gross profit margin to 34.9 per cent, compared with 33.9 per cent in the same period last year.

Cyprus businesses need easier access to European funding if EU initiatives are to translate into investment and growth, Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Keve) president Stavros Stavrou said at EU Finance Day 2026 in Nicosia.

Speaking during a discussion on the EU strategy for financing business innovation and growth, Stavrou said the next generation of European funding should go beyond financing the creation of new ideas and place greater emphasis on helping businesses adopt, commercialise and scale innovation.

The discussion formed part of EU Finance Day 2026, held on September 22, bringing together European officials, lenders, investors and businesses to examine how access to finance can be improved as the EU seeks to strengthen competitiveness.

The wider speaker line-up reflected that mix. It included Eike Klapper, deputy head of unit for access to finance at the European Commission’s DG GROW, Aimilia Pistrika, head of the European Investment Bank Group office in Cyprus, and Eirini Botonaki, the EIB’s senior loan officer and global relationship manager for the banking sector in Greece and Cyprus.

Eurobank is bringing prospective homebuyers closer to their dream home through its new MyHome Guide, which organises the mortgage application process into five steps, providing information and guidance from the initial calculation through to the completion of the loan.

Buying a home is an important life investment for anyone. With this in mind, Eurobank created the MyHome Guide, offering an integrated experience that combines technology with human expertise, with the aim of providing customers with information and guidance throughout the process.

The guide begins with the financing plan, helping prospective borrowers determine how much they may be able to borrow and what their own contribution will need to be. Through Eurobank’s available tools, they can obtain an indicative picture of the financing amount and monthly instalment, while also taking into account the one-off and recurring costs associated with owning a home.

Cyprus taxpayers wishing to register or change the bank account used for payments from the Tax Department will have to do so exclusively through Tax For All from October 5, with requests sent by email no longer accepted.

Under the new procedure, taxpayers will need to enter the Tax For All (TFA) portal using their CY Login credentials and submit the completed T.D. 2008 form, together with an IBAN certificate issued by their bank.

The Tax Department made clear that the bank account must be held in the name of the person or entity entitled to receive the payment.

The change effectively closes off alternative submission methods for most taxpayers. From October 5, an IBAN registration or amendment sent without first logging in through CY Login, including requests submitted by email, will be rejected, the department said.

Cyprus and northern Greece will explore opportunities for cross-border investment and business cooperation at the third Cyprus-Greece Business Meetings Summit, which will take place in Thessaloniki on October 5.

The event will be held from 5pm to 8pm at the Thessaloniki Chamber of Commerce and Industry, bringing together government officials, institutional bodies and businesses from Cyprus and northern Greece.

The event will be addressed by Deputy Minister of Interior responsible for Macedonia and Thrace Konstantinos Gioulekas, Cyprus’ consul in Thessaloniki Konstantinos Polykarpou, Enterprise Greece president Dimitris Skalkos and other officials.

Organised by FMW Financial Media Way in cooperation with the Thessaloniki Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the summit aims to facilitate the exchange of views between institutional representatives and businesses from the two regions.

Moody’s Ratings has raised the outlook on the National Bank of Greece’s long-term deposits to positive from stable, while confirming the lender’s long-term deposit and senior unsecured debt ratings at Baa1.

The ratings action, the details of which were shared by Greek business outlet Newmoney, followed an improvement in the outlook for Greece’s sovereign rating, which remains at Baa3.

Moody’s also changed the outlook on the bank’s senior unsecured debt to stable from negative, while confirming its Baseline Credit Assessment and Adjusted Baseline Credit Assessment at baa3.

The ratings agency also affirmed the bank’s short-term deposits at P-2, counterparty risk ratings at Baa1/P-2 and Tier 2 debt rating at Baa3.