As our smartphones become a gateway to virtually any errand that we might need to run, online transactions are on the rise. Parallel to this, online fraud is also growing, so be vigilant as you go about your Christmas e-shopping. Ferenc Biró, partner at EY Hungary’s forensic services discusses the latest online fraud sentiment with the Budapest Business Journal.

The Hungarian online retail market is now catching up with international peers. As Black Friday and the Christmas Holidays bring e-commerce to its annual peak, online retailers are readying themselves for the stampede.

In late November, supermarkets and specialist wine shops alike begin to expand the shelf space dedicated to sparkling wines. Little wonder: in December sales of effervescent vino spike to between five to six times normal monthly volumes.

A Sziget Festival new movie entitled "Wherever You Go", directed by Ciaran Jackson, has been uploaded to YouTube, the festivalʼs organizers tell the Budapest Business Journal. 

Regular corporate finance columnist Les Nemethy looks into when it might make sense to set up a holding company.

Tappointment has evolved from offering a smartphone-based appointment reservation system to delivering customized, creative IT services to clients, and is looking to break into international elite of the industry. The Budapest Business Journal asks CEO Zoltán Lukács about the startupʼs journey and transformation.

It is hard to tell what technology has not transformed the way in which societies and citizens interact with each other. While most feels that technology has radically changed their way of living, even compared to not more than 10-15 years ago, we are still in the middle of profound transformations that we can benefit from immensely. The T-Systems Symposium held in Budapest on November 26 showed several areas of such transformation.

Founded in 2016, the MKB Fintechlab Innovation Lab and international startup incubator celebrated its third anniversary in October. The FinTech incubator has achieved significant success in the field of design thinking and customer-centric development, and has supported internationally recognized innovations and digital developments with MKB Finance Group.

Clean, smart and affordable energy services for Hungarian consumers: these are the pillars of the new National Energy Strategy in the making, the main principles of which were presented at an energy investment conference this month. To achieve the goals and a climate-neutral sector, radical changes and huge investments will be needed.

Facebook is still the most popular marketing tool for SMEs, but more are opting for Instagram because of its effectiveness. 

It was a night for recalling personal memories and institutional milestones as the American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary celebrated its 30th anniversary at a gala event in the House of the Nation, the Hungarian Parliament.

The CEE industrial developer and logistics park operator CTP has announced plans to build around 150,000 sqm of speculative industrial space in the Hungarian market in 2020 in response to what it describes as “brisk demand”.

Commercial property investment for Hungary reached EUR 1.1 billion for the first three quarters of the year according to Savills and the total for the year is estimated to be EUR 1.5 bln-1.6 bln.

Having run the Budapest office of Kinstellar since its launch in 2008, and its predecessor Linklaters’ office for two years before that, Csilla Andrékó is standing down as managing partner. The Budapest Business Journal spoke with the firm about the rationale behind the move.

Exceeding analysts’ expectations, Hungary’s economic growth reached 5% in the third-quarter of the year. Now everyone see a near 5% growth rate for the full year, and even the projected slowdown in 2020 might not be as bad as previously thought.

International rating agency Standard & Poor’s changed its outlook on Romania’s "BBB-" sovereign credit rating to negative from stable, citing this year’s fiscal slippage, but also expressing concerns about the fiscal consolidation next year amid the planned wages and pension increases given electoral constraints in 2020.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szíjjartó opened the Hungarian Export Promotion Agencyʼs (HEPA) new office in Moscow on Friday, state news wire MTI reports.

South Africa-based energy storage products manufacturer Metair Investments says that its Romanian units Prime Batteries and Rombat have completed the installation of the group’s first lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing and assembly plant in Bucharest.

Listed auto trader AutoWallis has concluded a cooperation agreement with the founder of Western Hungary’s automotive retailer, the Iniciál Group, which is expected to reach a turnover of HUF 19.3 billion this year, according to a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal.