BusinessEurope’s EU Reform Barometer 2019 “Building an EU for European Businesses to succeed globally”, published on 20 March 2019, shows that the EU needs to do more to improve its competitiveness as EU growth has now been lower than US growth for 7 of the last 10 years. In addition, the Reform Barometer contains our annual survey of our member federations regarding progress on structural reform.

This year’s Reform Barometer looks in particular at how Europe is falling behind in its ability to develop world-leading firms.

We arrive at this conclusion for 3 reasons:

• None of the top 10 global companies by market capitalisation are European.
• Western Europe’s share of the top 10% of global firms in terms of profitability has dropped from 36% in the late 1990s to 24% now.
• Finally, when considering large high-growth firms/’unicorns’ (start-ups that have reached 1 billion dollar market value within a short timeframe), the EU has not matched other regions when it comes to developing such firms, with the number and average value of unicorns in the EU significantly smaller than those in the USA and China.

Against this background it is concerning that, according to our survey of member federations, governments have failed to step up their reform efforts.  Our member federations consider that member states have satisfactorily implemented only 20% of the essential reforms agreed with the EU.

Detailed assessments by national member federations of progress on the country-specific recommendations (CSRs) issued by the European Commission for Greece can be downloaded below.

The meeting was held on 7th November 2018 with the participation of the Secretary General for Commerce and Consumer Protection and members of the competent legislative drafting committee.
The purpose of the meeting was to inform SEV members in detail on the various legal and tax aspects arising from the new draft bill on company transformations (conversions, mergers and acquisitions).
The new legislative incentive, long needed by the market, is destined to simplify procedures, strike out existing ambiguities, deficiencies and conflicts between the company and tax law provisions that led to the creation of the phenomenon of «arbitrary» transformations.
The Secretary General for Commerce and Consumer Protection and members of the competent legislative drafting committee elaborated and explained in depth the new provisions and amendments, while experts representing SEV members had the chance to emphasize on pending issues such as the harmonization with the relevant tax provisions.

A General Board Members Meeting was held on November 19, 2018 at SEV premises in order to relaunch SEV initiatives on Corporate Governance and address the issues of malpractice that recently surfaced in the Greek market.
Mr. Fessas, President of SEV and representatives of the Hellenic Banks Association, the Athens Stock Exchange, the Hellenic Capital Market Commission and the Hellenic Corporation of Assets and Participations jointly proposed the amendment and update of the existing framework on corporate governance towards a more concrete, effective and modern framework that will activate both companies and public authorities to work more responsibly towards raising the level of corporate governance within Greek companies. To this end, they announced the reestablishment of the Hellenic Corporate Governance Council formed by SEV, the Athens Stock Exchange and the Hellenic Banks Association, as a means of responsible action on behalf of the private sector to assist in the realization of these goals.
Moreover, SEV proposed a set of other legislative improvements that will allow for the creation of enhanced transparency and visibility of corporate actions and make commercial publicity a tool for the establishment of accountability and trust in the market.

On Wednesday 5th December 2018, only one month before the new law on the operation of Sociétés Anonymes (SAs) entered into force, SEV held a subject specific workshop under the title “Recent amendments in the law on Sociétés Anonymes. Company law reforms in the service of attracting investments and simplifying business environment”
The scope of the workshop was to inform all businesses and investors on the forthcoming amendments on the law on SAs, the improvements and simplifications as well as new tools for attracting investors and reflect on possible proposals regarding recent corporate governance issues.
Among the workshop participants were the General Secretary for Commerce and Consumer Protection, selected competent representatives of the public administration, well respected legal experts, representatives of public and private institutions and business executives specialized in company law.

A panel discussion under the title “Lobbying with Transparency” was held on Friday 23th November 2018, with more than 100 attendants raising the issues of accountability, corruption, conflict of interest e.tc among business and other stakeholder’s representatives . The event was co-organised by Transparency International Greece and the Hellenic Alumni Association LSE and SEV participated in the discussion with Mr. Harry Kyriazis, Advisor to the Board of SEV. In his initial remarks Mr. Kyriazis highlighted that “only via a transparent and open dialogue between stakeholders and public administration, the consultation process is substantial and effective. This can lead to better decisions and consequently to better regulation”. He also added that “lobbying with transparency and clear rules can contribute to this end, and at the same time balanced representation of stakeholders is safeguarded”. While closing, he commented that “lobbying could be regulated in Greece”, and proposed the establishment of a relevant registry of actual representative bodies. Thought he stressed that the accompanying provisions should be as simple and clear as possible in order to be effective.
SEV is registered at the EU “Transparency register”, along with other 143 registrants based in Greece, and publicly publishes its positions on a regular basis.

The 1st compliance conference in Greece was held on Friday 28^th September 2018, under the aegis of SEV. It was organized by the Association of Compliance Officers in Greece (ASCO Greece), in collaboration with Palladian Conferences.

During his opening speech, Mr. Konstantinos Bitsios, Vice Chairman of SEV, stated that “companies that respect the regulatory framework in essence and not pretentiously, and companies that choose to invest in compliance, are the ones to stand out in international competition, attract investors and gain the trust of customers, suppliers and employees”. He also added that “a solid compliance function expresses a strong message by the company’s leadership about where it stands today, but mainly about where it wants to go tomorrow. It is essential that we all change our approach towards compliance as a mere formal obligation and work together to make it attractive and synonymous with the company’s reputation”.

The conference aimed at promoting compliance as a competitive advantage for modern entrepreneurship. At the same time, it dealt with specialized issues that concern businesses and professionals in the field, such as modern anti-money laundering practices, tax evasion issues and the new regulatory framework for investment and insurance products and markets. Finally, a vivid debate was developed on the role of the compliance officer, especially his contribution in building a corporate compliance culture, as well as his increased personal liability.

Overall, more than 180 people attended the conference, mostly compliance officers and top management executives representing financial and telecommunications sectors and the manufacturing and retail trade industry.

Mister President, Αγαπητέ Πρόεδρε, Αγαπητέ φίλε

Prime Minister, Αγαπητέ Αλέξη

Chairman, Αγαπητέ Θεόδωρε

Commissioner,

Dear friends,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I am very honoured to be with you this evening. One has always to say that when one is addressing an audience, but this time it is really true. I am happy to be here, because I know that this is an important event in the Greek calendar.

And I would like to thank the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises for giving me the opportunity to address so many representatives and actors of the real economy here in Greece.

It is a great pleasure to be here again in Athens tonight because during my long political life, some of the most important events have taken place here in this country and in its capital city.

It is now 35 years since Greece joined the European Economic Community as the European Union was called at that time. And I remember celebrating the news.

We – you – have achieved a lot. The country has modernised, it has opened itself to the world and it has taken its rightful place at the heart of the European family. Today, even in times of difficulty, Greece is a free and vibrant society, and it is a vital member of the European Union. The achievements of Europe should never be taken for granted.

This European Union has faced its worst economic, financial and social crisis since World War II. And it is still struggling with the consequences.

I have often used the Greek word ‘polycrisis’ to describe the current situation.

Our various challenges – from the security threats in our neighbourhood and at home, to the refugee crisis, and to the UK referendum – have not only arrived at the same time. They also feed each other, creating a sense of doubt and uncertainty in the minds of our people.

For too many years now, Greece and its people have been at the eye of the storm, and today I want to salute the patience and the determination you have shown.

Your actions – and your sacrifices – underline your commitment to the task facing your country. They are also a testimony of your place within the European Union.

Tonight, I want to bring a message of determination and a message of hope, for Europe and for Greece, but it is a demanding message at the same time…

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