May 2017
news
Also in this Issue... Tech M&A into the UK Is Riding High Agribusiness Offers Best Opportunities for Bio-Economy British Brand Values Take Brexit Beating UK Business Leaders Less Aware of Digital Risks Than European Counterparts
Supporting Cloud Adoption in European Financial Services
Editor’s Note
, Welcome to the May edition of EU Business News, the magazine dedicated to showcasing the very latest news, features and commentary on this fascinating and eventful business hub. Our in-depth insight and knowledge can help companies and individuals to identify issues and remain at the top of their game. For example, in this edition we examine recent research which shows that UK business leaders identify far fewer risks affecting their businesses, when compared to Germany and France. The findings from the research of the Gowling WLG Digital Risk Calculator, which launched this month, provides many insights into this crucial issue, as we explore. The digital market is incredibly important to the development of the region, and as such the industry will start to shift core services to the cloud within three to five years to harness emerging growth opportunities. Alongside this, there is also the exciting news from the Welsh Government that its Business Wales Accelerated Growth Programme - which supports the most ambitious pre-and post-start high-growth businesses in Wales to achieve their true high growth - has already surpassed the 1000 job creation milestone. Offering you the very best news and insight is vital to us here at EU Business News, therefore we strive to create a resource that you can use to stay one step ahead of the game. We hope you enjoy this edition and if you have anything you would like to share with us please do feel free to get in touch. I hope you enjoy this issue. Jessica Daykin, Editor Phone: +44 (0) 203 725 6842 Email: jessica.daykin@ai-globalmedia.com Website: www.business-news.eu
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Contents
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4. News 6. Tech M&A into the UK Is Riding High, New Research Argues* 8. Agribusiness Offers Best Opportunities for Bio-Economy 10. British Brand Values Take Brexit Beating 14. Accelerated Growth Programme Passes the 1000 Job Creation Milestone 16. Essential First Aid Advice to UK Businesses 18. Supporting Cloud Adoption in European Financial Services 20. UK Business Leaders Less Aware of Digital Risks Than European Counterparts 22. Investment Plan for Europe Unlocks â‚Ź177 Million for Romanian SMEs 24. 100% of European Political Parties and Voters Open to Email-Based Cyberattacks 26. European Paints and Coatings Market Advances with Emerging Digitisation 28. EU Agrees to More Support for Venture Capital and Social Enterprises
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NEWS
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deVere to ‘Extensively Develop’ in Europe; James Green, New Head of the Region
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NEWS
, One of the world’s largest independent financial services organisations is to “extensively expand and develop” its operations across Western Europe with a new regional boss, as revealed on 25th May. The move is part of the conclusions reached by the company-wide Strategic Review of its global business operation that began in March. It is expected to be finalised within a week. The company will, once completed, provide a full and comprehensive breakdown of its findings. deVere Group founder and Chief Executive, Nigel Green, comments: “One of the decisions we have made, based on the Strategic Review of our corporate structure and operating units is to extensively expand and develop our already solid position across Western Europe. “This expansion and development of the region is now a major priority for the organisation for the rest of 2017 and beyond. We’re set to shake-up the Western Europe market place. Of that, I am confident. “Underscoring our commitment to this move, we’re committing extra investment and resources to Western Europe. This will include expanding our existing bases in Spain, France, Germany, Switzerland and Italy and opening at least two more offices in the region. “Of course, this will create a raft of new and extremely rewarding career opportunities for talented advisers to work within a growing, responsible organisation.” He continues: “To head up this exciting new era in the region is my son, James, who has successfully led teams of senior wealth advisers in some of our most competitive areas across the Middle East and India in recent years. He is also a highly skilled wealth and investment manager in his own right who has deVere’s ‘client-first’ culture in his DNA.
James Green will begin his new role as Head of Western Europe on 5th June and will report directly to the CEO. Nigel Green goes on to say: “The decision is partly fuelled by three key factors: First, the increasingly buoyant economy in Western Europe; second, the increasing demand from the growing number of expats and international investors who are relocating there and who need specialist cross-border financial advice; and third to help close the ‘advice black hole’ that exists due to many advisers exiting the market due to high operating costs and to them routinely rejecting clients who aren’t deemed ‘high-net-worth enough’.” The deVere CEO concludes: “In short, Western Europe represents an enormous opportunity for growth for the company and we intend to explore this to the maximum.” When the Strategic Review was launched in March, Nigel Green, said: “As we move into our fifteenth year, and still dominating the international advisory sector, we have recently embarked on a strategic review of not only our corporate structures but also our operating units. “The process which we’ve now begun will allow us to take a bird’s eye view perspective of where we need to go as a business in order to maintain and expand on our market-leading position. It will enable us as a business to see in which areas and markets we need to reduce our presence, where we should invest and develop more quickly and in more depth, and with which products and services. The Strategic Review will, no doubt, result in a comprehensive period of restructuring
FSB Raises the Alarm with the UK’s 5.5 Million Small Businesses FSB is warning small businesses in the UK to take urgent steps to protect themselves from a cyber ransomware attack this week, following specific concerns it has received from the National Cyber Security Centre. As well as following its cyber protection advice, FSB says smaller businesses should put in place specific cyber protection insurance. Dave Stallon, commercial director at FSB, said: “We are raising the alarm with the UK’s 5.5 million-strong small business community. It is vital that small businesses and the self-employed prioritise this, and that they do it today. These businesses have limited resources, time and expertise to deal with the current and growing cyber-crime threat but there is specific assistance available. They should follow our guidance, and do it right now.” Mike Cherry, FSB National Chairman, said: “The National Cyber Security Centre has warned us that a new working week may bring more cyber ransomware outbreaks. We are urging all small businesses to take steps to reduce the risk of an attack. Businesses should immediately check for updates to their operating systems and anti-malware software and download them where needed.
feed to stay up to date with the latest advice. FSB members have access to specific cyber advice and insurance protection as part of their membership.” Small businesses and the self-employed are urged to make use of the expert cyber advice line offered to FSB members along with cyber protection insurance. FSB figures, 2016, show that on average, a cybercrime incident costs a small business victim nearly £3,000, and takes 2.2 days to recover from. FSB figures show that a staggering seven million cyber-crimes are committed against smaller businesses in the UK every year. That’s 19,000 every day. The risk of cybercrime attack is rising. Attackers are becoming more effective, whilst victims are becoming less able to discover attacks. Cybercrime is one of the fastest growing risks to small businesses, and one of the fastest growing areas of crime globally. www.fsb.org.uk
“We advise small firms to make sure their data is backed up – if the worst happens, data cannot then be held to ransom. Small firms should also keep an eye on the NCSC website and Twitter
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Tech M&A into the UK Is Riding High, New Research Argues Inbound M&A investment into UK computer software companies has increased by 70% over a two-year period, according to a new global M&A report launched on 22nd March by Livingstone, the international mid-market M&A and Debt Advisory firm. The report, The Acquirers – A Global Review, includes analysis of data from deals conducted between 2014 and 2016, across the UK, USA, Europe, and Asia. The data comprises inbound deals and cross-sector investment across the business services, industrial, media & technology, consumer and pharmaceutical industries.
quarter of all inbound M&A deals, up from 20% in 2015. Adding to overall UK M&A growth, the business services sector grew at a rate of nearly 40%, reflecting the ongoing strength of the UK’s service-led economy.
The findings show that inbound UK acquisitions of companies operating within the software market increased by 70%, with deal volumes increasing from 37 in 2014 to 64 in 2016 alone. The computer services sector also increased by a notable 41%.
Daniel Domberger, a partner and co-lead of the media and technology team at Livingstone, said: “The tech sector has been tipped as a leading light of British business, and 2016 didn’t disappoint. Our findings show that international acquirers and investors are continuing to eye up the UK’s blossoming tech sector, and its future looks positive, regardless of what happens with Brexit.
Overall, the UK’s media & technology sector grew by a rate of 25% year-on-year in the period, and accounted for nearly a
“Several high-profile deals in the tech sector made headlines last year, and contributing to the 70% rise was the acquisition of UK’s
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biggest tech company, ARM, by Japanese group Softbank. The historical significance of the £24 billion deal and the unprecedented value highlights that there is still strong appetite amongst overseas buyers to acquire or invest into high-quality UK companies, and the weaker pound is helping make the high valuations of UK tech assets easier for buyers and investors to deliver. “We have also seen a flurry of disruptive technologies make significant strides forward, including virtual reality, drones and robotics. Tech is becoming the driver for almost all industry sectors, and further investment into the UK’s technology sector will stimulate growth and create jobs.” www.livingstonepartners.com
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Agribusiness Offers Best Opportunities for Bio-Economy Agribusiness presents the biggest opportunities for the bio-economy, according to a new report published in the lead-up to Bio-Based Innovations Expo 2017, a new tradeshow focused around building a stronger market for bio-based products taking place at the NEC in Birmingham on 5-6 July. The report, entitled ‘Bio-economy Snapshot’, analyses the current state of the bio-economy, including the biggest opportunities and barriers to market. The research was conducted with 98 key players across the industry, with an even split between those at manager level and those holding more senior roles. According to the report, almost twice as many respondents identified agriculture as the sector that presents the biggest opportunity for the bio-economy than any other sector. Other key sectors identified included food and beverage, power and utilities, and wastewater treatment. Bio-based resources have a huge variety of properties, making them the most exciting materials for manufacturing. With the plethora of feedstocks, oiland starch-based crops, wood, algae, sewage, and paper pulp available in our ecosystem, much of which currently goes to waste, the business and sustainability
benefits of re-thinking the raw materials that go into products, packaging, and processes are clear. The report suggests that commercialising innovation is the primary driver in scaling up the bio-economy and identifies capital, regulatory support, and research and knowledge as the biggest barriers to growth for bio-based and biodegradable innovations. Product development is ranked as the primary focus for a third of respondents over the next 12 months, followed by increasing sales, marketing, and improving sustainability. Bio-Based Innovations Expo 2017 aims to scale up the bioeconomy and find solutions to the challenges highlighted in the report, and will feature speakers and participants from across the bio-based innovations value chain. Key topics for discussion will include: • How to increase market demand for bio-based products;
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Successful collaboration with governments to support growth in the bio-economy; Improving the quality and performance of bio-based innovations.
Charlotte Morton, Chief Executive of We Are Orchard, the event organisers, said: “This report offers a great snapshot of the current state of the bio-economy and the industry’s principal opportunities and barriers. The key messages are that there is huge appetite for growth in agribusiness and that businesses working in the bio-economy need more financial and regulatory support to help them capitalise on the opportunities offered by bio-based innovations. “Bio-Based Innovations Expo 2017 will aim to find solutions to the challenges identified in this report and promote the benefits of the bio-economy through showcasing the most progressive technologies, bio-based materials, and biodegradable products. It’s a must-attend event for those looking to extract value from what we traditionally think of as ‘wastes’.”
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British Brand Values Take Brexit Beating Every year, leading valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance values the brands of thousands of the world’s biggest companies. Britain’s 150 most valuable brands are featured in the 2017 Brand Finance UK 150. British brands have suffered some dramatic falls in their dollar-denominated values this year. Of the 140 of the brands with data for both 2016 and 2017, 88 have declined in value. On average, the UK’s top brands lost 6% of their value last year. There are several reasons behind this, but the common factor is the devaluation of sterling in the wake of the Brexit vote. This significant loss of brand value should concern British policymakers, brand owners, workers and consumers. Senior politicians have vowed to protect our brand ‘crown jewels’ and Theresa May has promised tougher government scrutiny of brand acquisitions. However, the UK is currently one of the one of the most attractive place to buy brands; it is one of the world centres of the marketing and advertising industry and so a hub of brand creation; there is relatively little regulatory scrutiny of takeovers; and workforce restructuring is relatively straightforward, particularly compared to European markets. In this context, the sudden devaluation of British brands leaves them vulnerable to
takeovers from international buyers. Unilever and Burberry both recently defended bids from the US (from Kraft-Heinz and Coach respectively), while ITV is reported to have been the subject of repeated bids. Associated British Foods was unable to bring the Weetabix brand home after a stronger bid from America’s Post Holdings while world renowned chip-maker ARM was acquired by Japan’s SoftBank. This spate of acquisitions and the prospect of more raises serious questions about the potential impact on investment and employment. David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance, said: “While the impact of Brexit on the broader economy has not lived up to the doomsday scenarios, British brands are clearly vulnerable to takeover by foreign firms. At one level, this is testament to Britain’s strength at developing and managing desirable brand assets. However more should be done to ensure Britain gets its fair share of the spoils for its quality brands. Tighter regulation is one solution, but another is for management and shareholders to be fully aware of both the saleable value of their brands and the value that those brands contribute to the overall
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business. This way hasty sales for less than fair value, that endanger British jobs, might be avoided.” Though British brands have suffered in terms of their dollar value, looking at sterlingdenominated figures shows that the majority continue to perform well. Changing the currency almost reverses the decline in fact; 85 of the brands are increasing in value in GBP terms. Most valuable brand Shell is Britain’s most valuable brand, with a brand value of £28.3 billion, up 35%. Oil prices saw a steady increase across 2016 as supply became slightly more constrained, helping to improve revenues. After a drop at the beginning of the year, Brent Crude nearly doubled in value from early January to the end of December. Its asset disposal program following the completion of its merger with BG has helped to consolidate and strengthen Shell’s brand, which has been upgraded from AA+ to AAA- thanks to a Brand Strength Index score of 82. Shell’s longstanding partnership with Ferrari continues to deliver returns, with a demonstrable price premium attributable to the association with the world’s most
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powerful auto brand. Shell invests heavily in campaigns that position it as an innovative provider of the clean energy solutions of the future. As part of its ‘Make the Future’ initiative, Shell enlisted the help of six popstars from around the world for its ‘Best Day of My Life’ video, which became one of the most viral ads of 2016. Telecoms Second placed Vodafone had a more difficult year; even when measured in sterling its brand value declined (by 9%). Fellow telecoms brand BT fell even further, dropping 28% following its accounting scandal and the ongoing Openreach saga to £8.8 billion. Banking HSBC, in third place, is also down, though by just 1%. HSBC is going through a period of consolidation. At the domestic level, over a quarter of its UK branches have been closed in the last two years as digitisation and online banking become more prevalent. Internationally, HSBC’s Brazilian business was sold to Bradesco. The $5.2 billion sale represented a $1.7 billion loss which hit HSBC’s profitability in 2016. Stuart Gulliver will persevere with the cost savings however, having achieved economies of $2.8 billion this year. HSBC’s marketing communications have shifted to reflect its more focused approach. The ‘World’s Local Bank’ message, conveyed to such great effect by outgoing Marketing Director Chris Clark for so many years has been replaced with campaigns that now focus more on HSBC’s role in facilitating personal and business ambitions. Banks are of course at risk from Brexit. Theresa May’s apparent tough negotiating line may mean that passporting rights are at risk. Stuart Gulliver has indicated that over 1,000 jobs are likely to be moved to Europe once Brexit takes effect in 2019. Barclays appears to have been harder hit, with a jump in its applied discount rate reflecting its exposure to the uncertainties of the operating environment for UK financial services, leading to a brand value drop of 7% to £10 billion.
Retail/apparel The apparel sector has been marked by a stark online/offline divide. The continued scandals surrounding Sports Direct have contributed to a 5% brand value loss. With Mike Ashley facing a Select Committee and heavy media scrutiny over the working conditions at its Shirebrook warehouse as well as its alleged attempted surveillance of MPs, Sports Direct’s brand dropped in value to £1.16 billion. In contrast ASOS has staged a revival after a series of unfortunate events including a major warehouse fire. ASOS is benefitting from its international expansion and the exponential growth of ecommerce. The retailer’s brand rose by 29% over the past year to £710 million. Airlines Three airlines made the UK 150 this year, led by British Airways with a brand value of £2.9 billion. However, the longer-term shift towards low cost airlines combined with weakened consumer spending power in long-haul locations is evident. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are both down, by 7% and 15% respectively. In contrast Easyjet is up by 60% to £1.34 billion. As consumer budgets for holidays remain tight and people look closer to home for their breaks, Easyjet’s brand could add further value, though even on short haul flights, the weakened pound threatens a reduction in foreign travel. Fastest growing brand Lynx is Britain’s fastest growing brand, up 91% to £2.1 billion. Unilever decided to ditch the increasingly anachronistic ‘lynx effect’ campaign that was seen to be out of touch with the modern male. It has performed an almost complete reversal of its previous identity, with a series of new campaigns designed to portray a “radical and progressive view on masculinity”. Despite initial cynicism from marketing pundits, the approach appears to be paying off.
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Accelerated Growth Programme Passes the 1000 Job Creation Milestone The Welsh Government’s Business Wales Accelerated Growth Programme - which supports the most ambitious pre-and post-start high-growth businesses in Wales to achieve their true high growth has already surpassed the 1000 job creation milestone.
To-date the programme - which offers a bespoke package of support helping businesses to grow faster, stronger and for longer – has created 1,200 jobs, helped participating companies attract £21.4 million of private sector investment and generate £8.3 million worth of exports. It means that every £1 spent on the programme leverages a further £5 of private sector investment – and a further £2 of exports for the Welsh economy.
strategic constraints that may be hampering their true high growth potential.
in the last there years and employs more than 20 highly skilled engineers.
“This approach is working – these businesses are delivering results, creating jobs, increasing turnover and export sales which in turn are providing benefits to local communities throughout the country. I am pleased to note that a number have already created more than 50 jobs each and some have attracted in excess of £1 million of private investment.”
CEO Paul Taylor said: “We joined the programme to help us overcome the challenges we faced in rapidly scaling the business and fulfilling our true growth potential. We see ourselves as very much a global business and the support we have had has helped us to focus on growing an international company. The Accelerated Growth Programme has been a fantastic resource as it is so flexible and responsive to our needs as we develop.”
The programme, launched just two years ago, with EU and Welsh Government funding, is currently supporting 370 companies, including start-ups, working across Wales in a wide range of sectors.
One example is Laser Wire Solutions, based in Treforest Industrial Estate, Pontypridd, that has seen exports increase by more than £1 million since it joined the programme in 2015 and which it aims to double over the next twelve months.
Economy Secretary Ken Skates said: “SMEs and start-ups are the lifeblood of the Welsh economy and this programme is specifically designed to help these businesses overcome any
The company manufactures laser based equipment that strips ultrafine wires used in industries such as medical device manufacturing, high speed data and aerospace. The business has tripled turnover
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The company has benefited from: specialist 1-2-1 consultancy on market research to identify high value clients; HR advice to support management of people in a growing business and ICT advice to ensure they have robust systems critical for back office management and information. gov.wales
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Essential First Aid Advice to UK Businesses The UK’s leading safety expert, Arco, is encouraging businesses to place first aid responsibilities at the top of their agendas with the help of its brand-new version of the ‘First Aid and Training in the Workplace’ expert guide.
Available to download online, the ‘First Aid and Training in the Workplace’ expert guide now contains information regarding new motor vehicle kits, trauma first aid kits and electric shock rescue equipment to ensure businesses are fully equipped for any emergency that may arise on or off site. Employers can download the guide to get equipped with vital information regarding BS8599-1, Workplace First Aid Kits. The standard, which was created in 2014 by The British Healthcare Trade Association and British Standards Institute (BSI), sets the minimum level that workplace first aid kits should conform to. In response to these standards, Arco’s updated guide contains information on its new range of first aid kits, which were created to ensure customers were complying to legislation, no matter the size or risk level of the workplace. The updated guide also benefits any company with people driving for work, providing details of Arco’s new motor vehicle first aid kits that are fully compliant with BS 8599-2:2014, the
specification for the contents of motor vehicle first aid kits. The new range of kits have been devised by leading road safety experts to help offer road users the tools to treat minor wounds and serious injuries prior to the arrival of the emergency services. Additionally, the guide introduces Arco’s new Trauma First Aid supplies that are essential for several industries and workplaces such as: • Any high-risk workplaces including glass and metal handling environments. • Sectors identified by RIDDOR data as benefitting from training in the use of tourniquets, including construction and forestry. • Workplaces where there’s a high chance of someone receiving a serious injury. • Workplaces where there’s a risk of an attack. With any serious injury or traumatic bleed, survival of a casualty is reliant on fast and effective treatment, before the arrival of the emergency services. Arco’s new Trauma range, coupled with trained first aiders is essential to reduce risk and treat those in high risk workplaces.
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As well as including information on new and life-saving products available, Arco’s expert guide also covers current first aid legislation, while offering helpful guidelines for employers to follow to ensure they’re fully compliant. Niall Robinson, product and procurement manager at Arco, commented: “We first created the expert guide to help promote workplace safety and guide businesses towards providing the correct training and First Aid provision on site in case of an emergency. We understand how confusing it can be for employers to ensure the first aid kits they provide comply with current legislation and, as the UK’s leading safety experts, wanted to help by producing a simple guide. “Under Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981, employers have a legal obligation to provide both equipment and first aiders, should an employee injure themselves or take ill whilst at work. To support this, Arco also provides a full programme of HSE approved courses suitable for all organisations.” To discuss your requirements please visit www.arco.co.uk/ firstaid
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Supporting Cloud Adoption in European Financial Services Industry will start to shift core services to the cloud within three to five years to harness emerging growth opportunities, finds Frost & Sullivan’s digital transformation team. Cloud adoption in the financial services industry in Europe is finally picking up pace. Overcoming initial hesitation caused by extensive legacy infrastructure, lack of clarity on regulations and concerns related to compliance and data security, the industry will start to move core services to the cloud within the next three to five years. Cloud can assist stakeholders with challenges related to high cost, lack of innovation and personalisation in products and services, time to market, low consumer confidence and lack of operational efficiency. Cloud Platforms Powering FinTech in Europe, 2017, part of Frost & Sullivan’s Digital Transformation Growth Partnership Subscription, finds that by providing access to relevant data for better insights, Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud enable faster and better-priced financial services. The use of cloud platforms also drives partnerships, use of application programming interfaces (APIs), different pricing models and free offerings for consumers. Leading cloud platforms include Amazon
Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform, IBM Bluemix and Microsoft Azure. “Start-ups using cloud at the core of their strategy are disrupting the way businesses are organised, forcing incumbents to rethink their cloud and data storage and usage strategies,” said digital transformation research analyst, Deepali Sathe. “Emerging opportunities include new business models, such as peer-to-peer (P2P) payments and data analytics to launch innovative products and services that will increase convenience for consumers. As regulators step in with specific cloud-related guidelines, adoption is expected to accelerate.” Use of cloud enables access to a larger pool of data and new markets and business models will enable a variety of services and products, to drive several growth opportunities: • Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) will help channelize services like authentication and card and account aggregation; • Cloud platforms will be fundamental to providing blockchain services;
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Payments is the largest market sub-segment and the P2P model, which is cloud based, will see massive growth and; As the ecosystem evolves, the regulatory technology (RegTech) services market will take off as the catalogue of regulations for cloud adoption is expected to go beyond 300 million pages by 2020. Services such as antimoney laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) will be leading applications.
“The cloud ecosystem is a complex web of stakeholders,” noted Sathe. “Innovations across the board will make available the best possible solutions and competitors will compete to strike a balance between security and innovation, even as commoditisation of services occurs rapidly.” www.frost.com
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UK Business Leaders Less Aware of Digital Risks Than European Counterparts UK business leaders identify far fewer risks affecting their businesses, when compared to Germany and France, according to research from the Gowling WLG Digital Risk Calculator, which launched this month. This new free tool allows small and medium size businesses to better understand their digital risks and compare these to other businesses and industries.
cyber-attacks will increase over the next three years, but on the other fail to identify such areas of risk as a concern for them. This is likely preventing them from preparing suitably for digital threats that they may face.”
Research informing the Gowling WLG Digital Risk Calculator was gathered from 999 large SMEs in the UK, France and Germany. Findings revealed an overly optimistic picture among UK business leaders, with UK respondents identifying far fewer digital risks as a threat to their business; when compared to the views of their European counterparts. UK respondents consistently identified between 2 and 25% less than non-UK respondents for each risk area analysed.
Respondents revealed that external cyber risks (69%) are thought to be the most concerning category of digital threat for businesses across all countries surveyed. This risk is anticipated to grow even further, with 51% of respondents believing that it will increase within the next three years.
Commenting on the research Helen Davenport, director at Gowling WLG, said: “The recent wide ranging external cyberattacks such as the Wannacry and Petya hacks reinforce the real and immediate threat of cyber-crime to all organisations and businesses. However, there tends to be an “it won’t happen to me” attitude among business leaders, who on one hand anticipate external
Other digital risks of concern to participants include customer security (57%), identity theft / cloning (47%) and rogue employees (42%). More than a third of respondents (40%) also believe that the lack of sufficient technical and business knowledge amongst employees is a risk to their business. Additionally, one third (32%) of UK businesses feel that digital risks related to regulatory issues have increased during the past three years. However, less than a third (29%) believe that regulatory issues are a risk to their business.
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Data protection Risks related to highly sensitive/ valuable data are the second most prominent risk to businesses (55%), according to respondents. However, when asked about the GDPR, which represents the most significant change to data protection legislation in the last 20 years, only one seventh (14%) of UK businesses were aware of the fines they may face for failing to protect their data. In comparison, 26% of respondents from Germany and 45% from France were aware of the maximum fine, placing UK business leaders at the back of the pack when it comes to understanding the risks posed by failure to comply with the GDPR. Despite the identification of data risks, only 52% of UK businesses do regular data back-ups, compared to 66% in Germany and 67% in France. Moreover, only 32% of UK businesses and 39% of businesses in Germany open to using off-site storage for sensitive data today, compared to 50% of French businesses. Legal support Given the changing nature of the digital world, the majority of business leaders (70%) involve IT support in their digital
risk management. However, in comparison the number that say they involve legal support drops significantly down to an average across the surveyed nations of just 31% (46% UK, 23% Germany and 23% France, respectively). When asked about how prepared they feel for their digital risks, only 16% of all respondents stated that they are fully prepared. Patrick Arben, partner at Gowling WLG, comments: “When affected by a cyber-attack or any other digital threat, the immediate focus is to work with IT professionals to understand what has happened. However, it is always worth taking internal or external legal advice, before commencing an investigation and as circumstances change. The essence for all business leaders is to stop ignoring the digital risks their companies face. By doing this, they can easily and proactively work to prevent future attacks from happening.” gowlingwlg.com
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Investment Plan for Europe Unlocks €177 Million for Romanian SMEs The European Investment Fund (EIF) and Raiffeisen Bank, have signed a COSME agreement that will allow the Bank to provide RON 800,000,000 (ca. €177m) in loans to small and medium-sized Romanian businesses. THIS agreement will allow Raiffeisen Bank, to provide SMEs with loans benefiting from reduced collateral requirements, extended maturities and to support start-ups which have a limited access to lending. Around 2,000 Romanian SMEs are expected to benefit from these loans.
businesses and the creation of jobs, is fundamental for growth in Europe. EIF is committed to supporting SMEs and is pleased to be signing, this EFSI SME agreement with Raiffeisen Bank in Romania. Raiffeisen Bank is well-placed to reach out and enhance access to finance for 2,000 companies across the country.”
This agreement was made possible by the support of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI). The EFSI is the central pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe, the so-called “Juncker Plan”.
Steven van Groningen, President of Raiffeisen Bank, said: “This new partnership will facilitate access to finance of SMEs, under favourable terms - reduced collateral requirements and without any cost attached to the EIF guarantee, while further enhancing the fruitful long-standing cooperation between Raiffeisen Bank and the European Investment Fund. The loans will cover both investment and working capital needs, for the SMEs to meet their operational needs, strengthen their competitiveness and achieve their strategic objectives.”
Corina Creţu, commissioner for regional policy, said: “The Juncker Plan is working to support jobs and spur growth across Europe. Facilitating access to finance for small and medium-sized businesses is an important component of the Plan. I am delighted that, with today’s agreement, more Romanian businesses will be able to invest in expansion, job-creation and innovation thanks to the Juncker Plan.” EIF Chief Executive, Pier Luigi Gilibert said: “Support for
The Investment Plan is already expected to mobilise around €743 million in investments in Romania and €178 billion across Europe.
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The European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) is the central pillar of the Juncker Plan. It provides a first loss guarantee, allowing the EIB to invest in more, often riskier, projects. The EFSI is already showing concrete results. The projects and agreements approved for financing under the EFSI so far are expected to mobilise more than €183 billion in investments and support over 425,000 SMEs across all 28 member states. In September 2016, President Juncker proposed to extend the EFSI by increasing its firepower and duration as well as reinforcing its strengths.
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100% of European Political Parties and Voters Open to Email-Based Cyberattacks New research, released today by Agari, reveals that despite the recent high-profile nation-state sponsored email attacks on political parties during elections, none of political parties in the UK, Germany and Norway, all of whom have upcoming elections, have email authentication or protection against spear phishing in place. 8% have published an email authentication policy but left the door wide open by setting their policy to ‘none’, which will not stop malicious emails from reaching intended victims. This lack of security is leaving voters, supporters and the parties themselves wide open to targeted email attacks using identity deception and social engineering methods.
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance) is an open security standard that is designed to detect and prevent identity deception by enabling ISPs (Internet Service Providers) and any organisations receiving emails to check that incoming mail is authenticated. T However, in order for it to work, the political parties in Europe need to publish a DMARC ‘reject’ policy, which none of them has done to date.
that have blighted two elections in recent months, political parties are still showing no signs of even acknowledging that they need email protection. DMARC allows organisations to make it impossible to spoof their email domains. In the absence of a DMARC policy and protection against identity deception, anybody can write an email that appears to come from an unprotected organisation and have it delivered to the unwitting victim-to-be.”
As demonstrated in the past 12 months with the attacks on the En Marche! party in the French Presidential elections and on the Democratic National Committee (DNC) during the U.S. presidential elections, an email attack that results in leaks of sensitive data can deter from a free and fair election and, ultimately, impact the results.
When examining the main political parties of UK, Germany and Norway, only the UK Liberal Democrats and the UK Green Party have put a DMARC ‘none’ policy record in place. While this is a good start and shows, they have the intent to protect themselves and the public, it is not yet sufficient to provide any protection.
“Take the Macron attack last month, where there were several email accounts associated with Macron’s campaign that were compromised in a spear phishing attack - none had a DMARC policy that would have defended against spoofing. As we head into the next election campaigns, only two UK political parties have a DMARC policy, but neither has it configured to block malicious traffic.”
To negate this risk, organisations should implement email authentication with a ‘reject’ policy using the open standard DMARC. This prevents impostors from using the domains of the political parties to deceive internal campaign staffers, volunteers and the public. The combination of these two security defences would have prevented both the U.S. DNC compromise and the French En Marche! attack.
To block spoofing, these organisations need to take the steps to move to DMARC ‘quarantine’ or preferably ‘reject’, to put unauthenticated messages in the SPAM folder or block them outright. DMARC policies are publicly available through DNS records and you can look up any political party’s policy here. Dr Markus Jakobsson, Chief Scientist at Agari, comments: “This is a disaster waiting to happen. It appears that despite the now infamous email attacks
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“Moreover, most organisations, including political parties, use antiquated inbound email filters, with no protection against identity deception. If an organisation simply uses a spam filter, all they avoid is getting unwanted Viagra advertisements -- they have no protection against phishing emails. “Similarly, and sadly, even those that do have phishing filters only have partial protection, since traditional phishing filters rely on
the blacklist paradigm, which is not applicable to spear phishing attacks. It is vital for political organisations to recognise the risks they are taking by not addressing this problem. To prevent these cyberattacks and preserve free and fair elections, Agari is offering the Agari Email Trust Platform and its email security expertise free of charge to political parties in the run-up to the UK, German and Norwegian elections in 2017. Agari has visibility into 70% of global inboxes, including the John Podesta and Macron campaign staff Gmail accounts that were targeted in the U.S. and French elections. Jakobsson concludes: “Enterprises have, increasingly, woken up to the threat they are facing and are starting to deploy the appropriate security countermeasures. It is time for political parties to recognise what is at stake and do the same.” The Agari Email Trust Platform verifies trusted email identities based on insight into 10 billion emails per day to stop advanced email threats that use identity deception. Agari protects the inboxes of the world’s largest organisations from the number one cyber security threat of advanced email attacks including phishing, spear phishing and business email compromise.
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European Paints and Coatings Market Advances with Emerging Digitisation Growth in the European paints and coatings market continues to pick up pace. End-user preferences and regulatory requirements are shifting the market towards disruptive technologies such as Big Data and multifunctional/smart coatings, compelling coating companies to move beyond product manufacturing to become total solution providers. “The development of smart/multifunctional coating systems and technologies, such as self-healing and anticorrosion coatings are presenting tremendous growth and highvalue opportunities for coating companies across specific industrial and infrastructural sectors like manufacturing and oil and gas,” said visionary science industry director, Dr Brian Balmer. Trends in the European Paints and Coatings Market, forecast to 2021, new analysis from Frost & Sullivan’s Future of Chemicals & Materials in Infrastructure & Mobility Growth Partnership Service programme, provides key drivers, restraints, technologies and growth opportunities across the European paints and coatings market with focus on architectural, automotive,
protective and marine, powder coatings, and wood and furniture sectors. From a regional perspective, end users in Western Europe demand high performance and sustainable solutions, while customers in the Eastern European countries are pricesensitive and prefer relatively standard and cheaper solutions. Other trends and developments driving growth in the European paints and coatings market include: • Architectural coatings continue to be the biggest industry segment, with powder coatings as the fastest growing subsegment due to the benefits it provides companies in terms of application costs, productivity, and reduced rejection rates;
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Partnerships between original equipment manufacturers and insurance companies will boost opportunities in the European automotive coatings segment and; Better durability and versatility of polyurethanedispersions (PUD) propel demand for indoor paints, wood flooring, exterior cladding, and roof coatings.
“The European paints and coatings market is still fragmented with many regionally strong manufacturers,” noted Dr Balmer. “This provides an opportunity for larger participants to merge with, or acquire, regionally stronger players to expand customer base, build scale of operations, or acquire new technology solutions.” ww2.frost.com
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European Paints and Coatings Market Advances with Emerging Digitisation
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EU Agrees to More Support for Venture Capital and Social Enterprises Small and growing companies and social enterprises will enjoy better access to finance, thanks to EU rules agreed on 30th May by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission. The revamped rules are part of the Commission’s drive to stimulate venture capital investments in the EU, a core objective of its Capital Markets Union (CMU) project. The Commission proposed an overhaul of the existing European Venture Capital Funds (EuVECA) and the European Social Entrepreneurship Funds (EuSEF) regulations in 2016 as part of the CMU Action Plan. The objective of these reforms is to improve access to finance for small and growing companies and social enterprises to promote jobs and growth. The rules are also linked to the Investment Plan for Europe, which provides a comprehensive strategy to tackle the lack of finance that is holding back Europe’s potential to grow. Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis, in charge of financial stability, financial services and capital markets union, said: “Today’s agreement removes another barrier to venture investment at EU level. The reforms we have agreed – expanding investment possibilities for funds, broadening the range of eligible managers and simplifying administration will help investor capital reach the SMEs that need it.”
Today’s agreement will open EuVECA and EuSEF to fund managers of all sizes and will allow a greater range of companies to benefit from EuVECA investment. It will also improve access of investors to small and growing businesses and social ventures. Finally, it will make the cross-border marketing of EuVECA and EuSEF funds less costly and will simplify registration processes. Specifically, the agreement reached: • Extends the range of managers eligible to market and manage EuVECA and EuSEF funds to larger fund managers, i.e. those with assets under management of more than €500 million. Large managers can provide economies of scale, passing benefits on to investors; • Expands the ability of EuVECA funds to invest in small mid-caps and SMEs listed on SME growth markets. This should increase the diversification possibilities offered by EuVECA and EuSEF funds and, therefore, make them more attractive to investors and; • Decreases the costs by explicitly prohibiting fees imposed by competent authorities of host Member
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States where no supervisory activity is performed. It also simplifies the registration processes and determines the minimum capital necessary to become a manager. The agreed text now follows ordinary legislative procedure before the final endorsements by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU. Background The European Venture Capital Funds (EuVECA) and European Social Entrepreneurship Funds (EuSEF) regulations set up two new types of collective investment funds to make it easier and more attractive for investors to invest in unlisted SMEs. Both regulations were adopted on 17 April 2013 and came into force on 22 July 2013. The EuVECA and EuSEF label allows fund managers to market these funds across the EU to professional and nonprofessional investors able to commit a minimum of €100,000. Given the importance of making progress towards the Capital Markets Union, the Commission decided to bring forward the general review originally planned for July 2017. It launched a consultation on 30 September
2015 to ask whether targeted changes to the regulations could boost the take-up of these investment funds. The review identified several factors holding back the development of these funds. These reforms are a part of a range of measures the European Commission is taking to stimulate venture capital in Europe. They include the use of EU budgetary support to attract capital from major institutional investors through a pan-European venture capital fund of funds, as well as promoting best practices in national tax incentives for venture capital to foster investment in SMEs and startups. The Commission will also provide technical assistance to those Member States who wish to develop market-based finance, such as venture capital. As part of the wider CMU package to stimulate venture capital investments in the EU, a panEuropean venture capital fund of funds will combine EU financial sources with greater volumes of private capital. This pan-European fund of funds should help to overcome market fragmentation and attract private investors to the EU venture capital asset class. europa.eu
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EU Agrees to More Support for Venture Capital and Social Enterprises
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