The above article authored by Senior Associate, Xenia Kalogirou, has been featured in the International Financial Law Review. In the article Xenia discusses the liquidity management tools used in collective investment schemes in Cyprus and the EU Commission’s proposals to amend AIFMD and the UCITS Directive.

The 2022  IFLR 1000 Financial and Corporate ratings for Cyprus have now been released and may be viewed here.  We are delighted to note that Elias Neocleous & Co LLC has once again received a ‘Tier 1” ranking. Additionally we are proud that five of our leading professionals have  been singled out for individual commendations for excellence in their performance. Elias Neocleous has been recognized as a ‘Market Leader’, Costas Stamatiou has been noted as a ‘Highly Regarded’ lawyer and Demetris Roti, Michael Pelosi and Dimitris Papoutsis have all been acknowledged as ‘Notable Practitioners’. Our congratulations go not only to them but also their departments for another year of outstanding performance.

The Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2022 (‘HNW’) has been published and we are delighted to report that for the fourth consecutive year both the Elias Neocleous & Co LLC Private Client Department, and Head of Department, Elias Neocleous, have been listed in the ‘Band 1’ category.

The Council of Ministers has approved the draft legislation concerning the establishment of limited liability shipping companies. Once the draft legislation is adopted by the Cyprus Parliament and enters into force, it shall contribute to the creation of a one stop shop at the Cyprus Deputy Ministry of Shipping.

The 7th Cyprus Professional Services Conference took place in Nicosia on 24th May 2022. Chaired by Harris Pistos, Director of International Banking at Bank of Cyprus, the theme of the conference was ‘Rising to meet challenges’ and clearly, with the after-effects of the pandemic and the current war in Ukraine, there was much to be discussed.

The Women in Business Law Europe Awards recognise leading women for their contributions to the practice of business law and also firms that have developed the most progressive initiatives towards diversity and inclusion from throughout the continent.  The awards attract entries from the most prestigious law firms across Europe and the UK with past winners including Clifford Chance, Baker Mackenzie, Herzog, and Sidley Austin.   It therefore gives Elias Neocleous & Co LLC enormous pleasure to announce that Senior Associates, Kyriaki Stinga and Elena Christodoulou, have both been deservedly selected as individual finalists in the 2022 awards.  In addition, Elias Neocleous & Co LLC. has been listed as a finalist for the South-East Europe Jurisdiction Award.

The 2022 Legal 500 Europe, Middle East & Africa rankings have been released and for the second consecutive year we are delighted to report that Elias Neocleous & Co LLC has received a Tier 1 rating in all nine categories reviewed.  We are the only law firm in Cyprus to achieve this.

The protocol amending the double tax convention between the Republic of Cyprus and the Swiss Confederation which was signed on 20 July 2020 in Nicosia, Cyprus came into effect on 3 November 2021 (please see Circular 3/2022). The protocol relates to the avoidance of double taxation in respect of taxes on income and on capital.

The 2022 Citywealth IFC awards took place in London on 26th January, and we are delighted to inform you that Elias Neocleous and Co LLC has retained its title as the “ Law Firm of the Year: Malta & Cyprus”.

In a recent article published in the new year special edition of the Phileleftheros newspaper, prominent Cyprus business leaders were asked to comment on the year that was, and where they see the new year taking the Cyprus economy and business community. Managing Partner, Elias Neocleous expressed the view that whilst the consequences of the pandemic have been hard felt in Cyprus, given the level of government intervention both at an EU and local level, the consequences are manageable and will dissipate.

Global Restructuring Review (GRR) has just released its 2021 guide to the world’s leading law firms for cross-border restructuring and insolvency matters. Global Restructuring Review is the world’s only daily news and analysis service on cross-border restructuring and insolvency law and we are delighted to report that for the third successive year Elias Neocleous & Co LLC has been included its elite GRR 100 list.

The results of the 2021 IFLR 100 ratings review have now been announced.  This is the 30th anniversary of the rating awards, and Elias Neocleous & Co LLC is pleased to note that, for the third successive year, we have been ranked as a ‘Tier 1’ legal firm in Cyprus.

We are delighted to announce that ‘World Tax 2021’, the International Tax Review’s comprehensive guide to the world’s leading tax advisory firms has once more rated our Tax Advisory Team as ‘Tier 1’.  The team’s work in areas of tax controversy has been specifically praised.  Additionally, at the individual level, Managing Partner, Elias Neocleous, has been recognised as a ‘Tax Leader’ in Cyprus.

Elias Neocleous & Co LLC would like to extend a warm welcome to our nine new trainee lawyers who are about to commence their training programme with us.   Once again competition for a place on the programme has been fierce, and our newest recruits have all successfully passed through a rigorous and demanding selection process.  Unsurprisingly, all our recruits can boast an excellent academic record and an impressive array of qualifications including PhDs, LLMs, LLBs, and LPCs.  However, as a significant international firm we also prize diversity and demand that our successful candidates possess other skills and attributes beyond the purely academic.

We are pleased to announce that, for the second consecutive year, India Business Law Journal (IBLJ) has awarded our firm the accolade of ‘Law firm to watch’ for our India related work in 2020.

The 2020 edition of Chambers High Net Worth Guide (‘the Guide’) was released 9 July 2020. On viewing it, we are delighted to note that it ranked our firm and, on an individual level for the third successive year, our Managing Partner, in its top tier of professional advisers in Cyprus.  The firm’s private client team offers a dedicated service for high net worth individuals covering issues such as the establishment and management of trusts, advice on asset holding structures, general wealth management and, general support and advice to family offices. 

It is with immense pride and pleasure that we announce the appointment of our partner, Christia Middleton, to the position of District Judge in Cyprus effective 1 July 2020.  

On 21st- 22nd May over 450 delegates from more than 20 countries gathered in Kiev, Ukraine for the INTAX FORUM Ukraine international conference to discuss various topics in the spheres of corporate finance, individual and corporate structuring, local and international taxation, investments, and transborder trading.

We would like to inform you that we have introduced a dedicated online portal for issues specifically related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The portal may be accessed from our main website neo.law and it contains regularly updated legal guidance on areas of the law which are directly impacted by current events.  

We are pleased to announce that Mondaq has awarded Elias Neocleous & Co LLC its “Contributor most read in Cyprus” award for October.

We are pleased to announce that ‘World Tax 2020’, the International Tax Review’s (“ITR”) comprehensive guide to the world’s leading tax advisory firms has elevated the status of our Tax Advisory Team from ‘Highly Recommended Firm’ to ‘Top Tier Firm’.  Additionally, the team’s work in areas of tax controversy has been specifically lauded.

Legal Business is the market-leading glossy monthly magazine for senior decision-makers in the UK and global legal market. Published ten times a year, the magazine reaches thousands of senior lawyers at major commercial firms across the UK and key financial centres of Europe, Asia and the US. It is published by Legalease, the publishers of the respected “Legal 500” rankings.

Cyprus Winners of Benchmark Litigation Europe Awards 2019 – One of the world’s leading rating houses for law firms focusing solely on dispute resolution matters.

Elias Neocleous & Co LLC advises Blackstone on Cyprus law aspects of its investment in Superbet Romania

It is a great honour and pleasure for us to co-sponsor with our esteemed colleagues and friends KLC Law firm, Athens the 2019 Legal 500 GC Powerlist event for Cyprus and Greece.

We are delighted that the latest Legal 500 rankings for Europe, the Middle East & Africa, released on 10 April, confirm Elias Neocleous & Co LLC as the leading firm in Cyprus with the highest overall rankings.

The increased engagement of Robots and Artificial Intelligence in various aspects of modern business challenges the traditional perception we have of employment relationships and will almost inevitably bring considerable changes to the job market.

Elias Neocleous & Co LLC has been recognised by Who’s Who Legal as leading experts on Cyprus Employment Law.

During the weekend of 16 – 17 February 2019, our firm’s members enjoyed a relaxing and vibrant weekend together with their families, at the Aphrodite Hills Hotel.

We would like to congratulate our CFO, Alexandra Spyrou, who, following years of hard work and dedication, has been awarded the prestigious Professional Postgraduate Diploma in Private Wealth Advising by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).

We are delighted to announce that we have strengthened our presence in Western Europe with the acquisition of Jurispectrum, a niche business law firm which operates in Belgium and Luxembourg.

As early as March 2014 the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (“CySEC”) alerted potential investors to the risks associated with investment in virtual currencies or contracts for difference linked to them.

IFLR1000, the guide to the world’s leading financial and corporate law firms and lawyers, has today released its listing of leading lawyers. Elias Neocleous & Co LLC continues to lead the Cyprus legal services market, being the only firm awarded the prestigious Tier 1 ranking in Cyprus.

The fourth BEST LEGAL conference was held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Limassol on 25 September. The event, which is organized by the Cyprus business magazine SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS, has become the leading legal conference in Cyprus directed at attendees from overseas, and this year’s event attracted more than 200 prominent businesspeople, lawyers and other professionals from more than 20 countries.

Elias Neocleous & Co LLC is a principal sponsor of The Limassol Economic Forum, which will take place on Friday, 20 October 2017. Now in its eighth year, the forum is the biggest and most important business gathering in Cyprus, and has become a major platform of debate on political, economic and business issues in Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Our people are our most important asset, and key to providing the best service and advice to clients. We believe in developing our people from within the firm: we recruit the best graduates from leading universities, provide them with the best training and support and offer them unlimited career prospects.

In line with our continuous development and investment in our human resources we are pleased to announce the strengthening of our Nicosia office with the appointment of a new partner and a new senior associate.

The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (“CySEC”) has issued a summary of the changes to passporting arrangements and conditions governing the provision of investment services and activities by third country firms that will result from the implementation of Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instruments and amending Directive 2002/92/EC and Directive 2011/61/EU, commonly known as MiFID II, and Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instruments and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 (“MiFIR”). MiFID II and MiFIR have been transposed into Cyprus law by Law 87(I)/2017 and the new provisions will apply from 3 January 2018. Law 87(I)/2017 expressly adopts the provisions of MiFID II, including a number of discretions that member states had been granted the option to adopt in transposing MiFID II.

On 7 July 2017 Law 87(I)/2017 was published in the Official Gazette of Cyprus, transposing the revised European Union Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) into Cyprus law. The new law, which will apply in Cyprus from 3 January 2018, will introduce significant changes to the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law of 2007 to 2016.

At the recent annual general meeting of STEP Cyprus, the local branch of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, Philippos Aristotelous, partner in the firm’s private client and tax departments, was elected as a member on the board of directors of STEP Cyprus.

In October 2016 the Income Tax Law was amended to bring its provisions on taxation of income from the use or sale of intangible assets into line with the “modified nexus” approach.

Legal Business is the market-leading glossy monthly magazine for senior decision-makers in the UK and global legal market. Published ten times a year, the magazine reaches thousands of senior lawyers at major commercial firms across the UK and key financial centres of Europe, Asia and the US. It is published by Legalease, the publishers of the respected “Legal 500” rankings.