EIB Group signed €88 billion in funding for over 900 high-impact projects in key policy areas such as transport infrastructure and urban mobility, energy and water, digitalisation, new technologies, innovation, healthcare, affordable housing, education and support to SMEs A record €49 billion invested in green finance More than €21 billion invested in energy security   In 2023, the European Investment Bank Group signed new financing contracts for close to €88 billion for high-impact projects in EU policy priorities, including climate action,...

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Bank commercial real estate (CRE) lending grew by 3.2% in 2023, significantly slower than the 10.9% growth rate in 2022, according to Federal Reserve data compiled by Trepp.¹ The growth rate in 2023 was the slowest pace since 2012 when the CRE market was still in the throes of the Global Financial Crisis.  Bank CRE Lending in 2023 Bank CRE lending was slow throughout 2023, as higher interest rates took a bite out of transaction volume and negatively impacted real estate valuations....

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With 2024 underway, it’s worth reflecting on the flurry of lawsuits brought in 2023 by creators against owners of artificial intelligence technology companies that have forced the intersection of AI and intellectual property rights under the legal spotlight. With the unprecedented growth of AI as a search and content engine, the boundaries of creative ownership and conventional notions of copyright protections are being challenged. In our July 2023 article on the lawsuit initiated by comedian Sarah Silverman and other authors against Meta...

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Eurozone inflation increased to 2.9% in December from 2.4% in November, as reported by the Independent. This was the first rise in seven months and was driven mainly by the end of German and French energy subsidies, which increased prices in the Eurozone’s 2 largest economies. Inflation is still well down from the peak of October 2022 when inflation rose to over 10%. The inflation increase muddied the waters somewhat for any potential interest rate cuts in early 2024, with analysts now...

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On January 9, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced the issuance of its final rule addressing worker classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The 2024 rule, which goes into effect on March 11, 2024, is largely consistent with the proposed version the DOL rolled out in 2022, rescinding and replacing the Trump administration’s more streamlined worker classification analysis while returning to the long-used “totality of the circumstances” standard, albeit with a pro-employee twist given the...

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