On 5 September 2025, the European Commission imposed a EUR 2.95 billion fine on Google for breaching EU competition rules in the online display advertising sector. The ruling is the result of a formal investigation initiated in June 2021, following a complaint from the European Publishers’ Council, which accused Google of systematically self-preferencing its own advertising services.

Freshfields, Oppenheim, and BDK Advokati have advised Continental and its ContiTech division on the sale of the Original Equipment Solutions business unit to US private holding company Regent. Taylor Wessing, Karanovic & Partners, Gen Temizer, and Stratulat Albulescu advised Regent. DR & AJU, Foley & Lardner, Gide Loyrette Nouel, Mori Hamada & Matsumoto, Felsberg Advogados, Cascione Advogados, and ECIJA reportedly advised Regent as well.

Filip & Company has advised ING Bank Romania, ING Bank N.V., and Raiffeisen Bank S.A. on a EUR 70 million financing for the La Fantana group with ING Bank Romania as the lead mandated arranger, bookrunner, coordinator, and initial lender, Raiffeisen Bank S.A. as the initial lender, and ING Bank N.V. as the agent and security agent.

With the recent launch of ChatGPT 5, OpenAI unveiled its most advanced and capable conversational AI to date, boasting significant improvements in contextual understanding, nuanced interaction, and generative fluency.

As of January 1, 2024, foreign companies without a physical presence in North Macedonia must appoint a tax representative when performing taxable transactions with local non-taxpayers. This requirement, established under the Law on Value Added Tax of North Macedonia (VAT Law), stands regardless of whether the general VAT registration threshold of MKD 2 million is achieved.

Ketler & Partners, member of Karanovic & Partners, has advised Mass on the sale of a 60% equity stake to Advance Capital Partners. Kavcic, Bracun & Partners reportedly advised ACP.

Ilej & Partners in cooperation with Karanovic & Partners and Havel & Partners have advised Czech industrial group MTX Group on its acquisition of Croatian company Omial Novi from Swiss-based Aluflexpack Group. Wolf Theiss, working with Willkie Farr & Gallagher, advised Aluflexpack.

In July 2025, the Albanian Data Protection Commissioner adopted Guidance No. 05/2025 on the Processing of Personal Data by Competent Authorities (“Guidance”), marking an important step toward operationalising Law No. 124/2024, Albania’s GDPR-aligned data protection law. This guidance introduces essential obligations for authorities tasked with maintaining public order and national security, such as the police, prosecution, courts, and other public bodies involved in crime prevention or investigation.

As of 1 August 2025, the newly adopted Regulation on Additional Requirements for the Placement on the Market of Products Containing Palm Oil, Palm Fat, or Other Vegetable Oils and Fats (the “Regulation”) will come into effect in Serbia, marking a significant development in the regulatory framework at the intersection of food law and consumer protection.

Europe has already begun regulating deepfakes. The EU’s AI Act emphasises transparency, risk management and conformity assessments for high-risk AI, but does not create new individual rights against deepfake misuse. It requires providers of systems that generate or manipulate deepfake media to embed machine-readable markings (e.g. watermarks or metadata) flagging content as AI-created, and obliges deployers (platforms or publishers) to “clearly and distinguishably” label any deepfake outputs as AI-generated.

This summer, the Albanian National Assembly adopted a significant package of amendments to the Law on Foreigners, signalling a clear shift toward aligning national migration rules with key EU directives. While the legal changes are substantial, their purpose is broader: to simplify how Albania governs entry, residence, and work rights for foreign nationals, especially those from the European Union. The reform reflects both Albania’s political will to approximate the EU acquis and a growing recognition that the country must adapt to new demographic, labour, and mobility dynamics. While the amendments cover a wide range of areas, we highlight below the provisions most likely to impact foreign nationals and their interactions with Albanian institutions.

The fight against software piracy has entered its second phase, marking a significant shift from the earlier era of physical piracy to the current challenges of combating digital piracy.

In a significant development for the personal data protection landscape in Albania, the Council of Ministers has adopted Decision No. 347, dated 19 June 2025, establishing a new state database titled “Electronic Registry of Data Protection Officers” (DPO Registry). This marks a major milestone in the country’s efforts to align its data governance infrastructure with international and European standards, in line with the newly reformed legal framework on personal data protection.

On 2 June 2025, the European Commission (“EC”) imposed a substantial EUR 329 million fine on Delivery Hero and Glovo for their involvement in a cartel in the online food delivery sector.

Karanovic & Partners has advised Paysera North Macedonia on obtaining an Electronic Money Institution license.

Effective 1 October 2025, amendments to the Law on the Centralised Records of Beneficial Owners (UBO) in Serbia will introduce important new obligations for a broader range of entities.

The National Bank of Serbia (“NBS”) adopted the new Decision on the Minimum Requirement for Capital and Eligible Liabilities of a Bank (“New MREL Decision”), as part of a package of new or amended bylaws following the latest amendments to the Law on Banks. The New MREL Decision shall replace the existing decision of the same name (“Existing MREL Decision”) and shall apply starting from 1 October 2025.

As part of the broader effort to harmonise national legislation with the EU General Data Protection Regulation, the Albanian Data Protection Commissioner issued Instruction No. 2, dated 30 April 2025 (Instruction No. 2), on the protection of personal data in the health sector. This Instruction repeals the previous 2020 framework and establishes a comprehensive set of rules governing the collection, use, and disclosure of health and genetic data.