Bulgaria has experienced a sustained increase in military spending that is unparalleled in its democratic history in recent years, according to a new report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). This puts the country in line with a continental and global trend of increasing defense spending amid a growing number of conflicts of international significance and accelerated rearmament. Bulgaria's military spending in 2025, expressed in US dollars at the 2024 exchange rate, will amount to $2.396 billion, SIPRI data shows. This is an increase of almost 9.3% year-on-year and a jump of nearly 70% compared to 2020. This is also the first time since 2008 that defense has received more than 2% of GDP (2.01%). Bulgaria has consistently given so much money to its army for the last time in 1991 - calculated in the same way, the then military spending was about $ 2.292 billion. The earliest estimates from SIPRI are for military budgets from the times of communism, which were about and more than double the current ones. For the entire democratic period, there is only one exception with larger spending on the army - in 2019 with its $ 2.832 billion, but the institute also notes that this is an exception related to payments for the acquisition of F-16 fighters from the United States. Since 2022, the army has had more and more money and a whole bunch of rearmament projects are underway: 8 + 8 F-16 fighters; New multifunctional modular patrol ships being built in our country; Nearly 200 Stryker infantry fighting vehicles, which will be assembled in Bulgaria; Thales three-coordinate radars; IRIS-T anti-aircraft missile systems; French Caesar self-propelled howitzers; NSM CDS coastal anti-ship complex; Drones, missiles, etc. For some of these purchases, Bulgaria will be able to use nearly €3.5 billion in European loans. The goal is for our armed forces to completely break with the Soviet past and use only modern systems by the end of the decade.

52.7% of young people aged 20 to 29 in Bulgaria are working, which places us in the last places in the EU in terms of employment among young people, along with Romania and Italy, shows a Eurostat study for 2025. In 2025, the employment rate in Bulgaria is 77% for people aged 20 to 64, but young people have a lower labor activity rate than the EU average (65.6%). This places them in the group of the least employed in Europe. The lowest result for employed young people is seen in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is negotiating for membership in the union – 46.5%. It is followed by Italy with 47.6% and Romania with 52%. The most employed are in the Netherlands – 84%, as well as in Malta (82.1%) and Germany (77%). Employment in the EU has grown by 6.3% since 2015. The self-employed are also increasing with it. 2.06 million young people in the EU are self-insured, accounting for 7.9% of all self-insured people in the EU. Bulgaria is second to last with 5.3%, followed by Spain with 5.9%. Ireland is last with 5.1%. The highest share of self-insured people is in Slovakia – 12.2%.

Bulgarian banks will distribute a record amount of dividends from their profits for 2025, with only four of the largest institutions preparing to pay their shareholders EUR 665.6 million. The amount exceeds last year's EUR 405 million by 64% and is EUR 100 million above the record EUR 564 million from 2023. It is equal to nearly 36% of the reported profit for last year. UniCredit Bulbank stands out with the largest amount, which will distribute to its shareholders just over EUR 277 million, or exactly 60% of its profit for 2025. This is also an individual record for the Bulgarian division of the Italian bank, and is only slightly below the EUR 285.5 million paid by DSK for 2023. Last year, UniCredit Bulbank capitalized all of its profits, while in previous periods it distributed 100%. DSK will distribute 253.4 million euros in dividends, or 45% of profits, which is in line with last year's amount (249.5 million euros). For the bank from the Hungarian OTP group, this is the fifth consecutive year of distributing profits, with its sustainable dividend policy being interrupted only by the acquisition of Societe Generale Expressbank and subsequently by the two-year ban by the Bulgarian National Bank on distributing dividends during the Covid crisis. According to the agenda of the upcoming general meeting of Postbank, the board's proposal is for it to be 112 million euros, or nearly 50% of profits. This will be a record amount for the bank and the first distribution of profits since 2017. At Allianz Bank, the intention is to pay out 23 million euros, or 83.3% of the profit. In total, for the last 12 years since 2014, the total amount distributed exceeds 4.5 billion euros. DSK contributes the most with over 1.7 billion euros and UniCredit Bulbank with 1.58 billion euros. UBB has a significantly more modest amount - under 0.5 billion euros, which is largely due to the series of banking and non-banking acquisitions through which today's huge financial group of the Belgian KBC was built.

8 years after the state decided to urgently start repairing dams in an emergency state and to pour in 500 million leva for this purpose, the balance sheet is sad. Of the 414 dams in urgent need of repair, the "State Consolidation Company" has managed to do something with only half of them. The caretaker government gave up waiting for the DKK to change this and decided that the dams would be excluded from the state list and their owners would take care of their repair. The state DKK will continue to work on other sites through its subsidiary "Montazhi", but for many of them the stage of construction activities is currently at zero. Among the sites on which nothing has been done are the Ogosta dam, owned by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, as well as the "Beli Iskar" dam, under the regional governor of Sofia region. The dam wall of "Beli Iskar" is one of the oldest hydrotechnical facilities in the country. The Benkovski dam with a volume of 8 million cubic meters, managed by Zeminvest, has been in need of urgent repair since 2018. The main spillway of this dam is in need of major repair, the water intake tower is not functioning, the shut-off valve is damaged and needs to be repaired and replaced. According to the government, the inclusion of these sites in the list of dams for repair under the umbrella of DKK blocks the ability of the owners to maintain them and carry out preventive repairs. Removing them will allow for more flexible maintenance solutions, as the state would monitor their condition. Work is progressing slowly and on most of the 267 dams on which Montazhi is working and already has ready-made technical designs. Some sites are 100% complete in terms of construction, but others are at zero. There is no easily accessible public data on how much of the 500 million leva contributed to DKK's capital in 2018 for dam repairs has been used up. From the very beginning of the capital increase of DKK to finance the repairs through "Montazhi", the subsidiary began to report high receivables. And in the latest financial report this is a fact. For 2024, the receivables amount to 151.67 million leva. The company is at a loss of 5.1 million leva.

While traditional banks in Bulgaria still measure their presence in square meters of office space and number of branches, one player is betting on the opposite logic: no offices, full digitalization and a minimum number of employees. And yet — billions of euros in assets and an ambition to become the main bank for the client. This is the model of Bigbank - an Estonian bank with over 30 years of history, with assets of 3.3 billion euros and equity of 299 million euros by the end of 2025, which operates in nine markets, including Bulgaria. In the country, it operates with a team of just 17 people and without a single physical office. And yet it is already competing for deposits and loans in one of the most oversaturated banking markets in the region. Bigbank operates in 9 countries and does not have a single physical branch. The headquarters is in Estonia and in all other 9 markets it operates as branches. Bigbank offers between 2% and 3% yield on deposits — levels that, according to him, are close to Western European markets, but contrast sharply with local practice. The main difference remains that Bulgarian clients rely heavily on deposits, while those in EU banks also rely on a much larger range of investment instruments. Bigbank is strongly focused on consumer loans and deposits. In the coming years, the plan includes introducing mortgage loans, credit cards, expanding corporate lending and supplementing the product range to a full banking portfolio. 5-6 years ago, the central bank in Estonia began offering mortgage loans. For now, the lack of mortgage lending remains a conscious choice. The reason is simple: the long horizon of these products. The first such products are expected to appear in late 2026 or early 2027, after the bank completes the expansion of its product architecture. If all these products are launched, the bank estimates that the team should grow to about 40 people. Strategically, the bank plans to gradually become universal in Bulgaria - one that offers a full range of products.

About 47 acres of the old DAP site in Stara Zagora have been acquired by Trinity Capital AD, a company that invests in the construction of commercial spaces throughout the country. The land has already been cleared of old buildings, leveled, and construction work is about to begin for the construction of XOPark Stara Zagora. With a commercial area of ​​about 20,000 sq. m and over 27 sites, the complex is located at the beginning of Kaloyanovsko Shosse. Over 560 parking spaces and an expected reach of over 250,000 people within a 30-minute drive are planned around the site. Trinity Capital is a company established in 2019 for the purpose of implementing and managing commercial projects, which in the process of development has acquired in-depth expertise in the construction and operation of commercial properties. The company currently owns and manages 150,000 sq m of retail space, including XOPark Sofia, the largest shopping complex in the Balkans, XOPark Yambol, XOPark Haskovo and XOPark Plovdiv, with 4 more projects from the XOPark chain under construction in the cities of Sandanski, Gotse Delchev, Stara Zagora and Razgrad. divident.eu

The Bulgarian company CAMCO caught the wave and transformed from a cosmetics distributor into a manufacturer for some of the largest chains in the world - world-famous brands - L'Oréal, Unilever, Procter & Gamble. Production at the factory in Plovdiv reaches 16 million products per year, and with the new lines, the capacity can exceed 50 million pieces. The company develops five own brands. Victoria Beauty is the oldest and most recognizable, Skincyclopedia is the newest - and with the greatest potential for global success. The brand is already sold in over 35 countries and relies on minimalist formulas and high concentrations of active ingredients. The portfolio also includes its own line of affordable perfumes Aristea, the Workaholics brand for hand and foot care, as well as the Standelli line of cosmetic accessories. In 2025, CAMCO reports a turnover of about 20 million euros - an increase of nearly 20% compared to the previous year. The following year is even more ambitious – a growth of 50%, or about 30 million euros in revenue. The business is based on three main pillars – cosmetics, perfumery and household chemicals. The distribution model is classic – with its own people, its own transport, coverage to every corner of Bulgaria. In 2010, the company acquired the “Badeshte” factory in Plovdiv – an abandoned socialist confectionery enterprise, deserted for nearly a decade. First, they turned it into a warehouse. Then into an office. Only in the third stage did they start building production. Today, production is the main pillar of CAMCO. With the new 40-meter automated line, with robotic palletizing and minimal human intervention – the capacity is expected to reach 50–60 million products per year. The company has about 200 employees, with the largest share in production. Today, near the town of Rakovski, CAMCO maintains its own farm with about two million snails. The mucus is extracted manually, in a humane way, without harming the animals – a slow but controlled process. The snail mucus line has become a leader in Bulgaria and is among the best-selling products, including in Western Europe. CAMCO produces private labels for global chains. The share of private label is growing and is now 60% of the business, 20-30% are own brands, the rest is distribution. CAMCO's partners include the two largest chains in the United Kingdom, as well as the international group AS Watson – part of the CK Hutchison holding, one of the largest retail players in the world. The group owns and manages chains in dozens of countries on different continents, including Rossmann in Germany and Central Europe. CAMCO produces for them for different markets. The company also works with one of the Scandinavian leaders in the FMCG sector, as well as with two of the largest chains in Spain. Among its partners is the German holding Rewe Group – a name with a long history and a serious market presence. The company has its own laboratory and R&D department that develops formulas and monitors trends.

Aurubis Bulgaria AD successfully implemented the project "Adapted Working Environment", implemented with the support of the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and the Human Resources Development Program 2021–2027. The initiative is aimed at improving working conditions and introducing more sustainable production practices in the company. The "Adapted Working Environment" project covers over 500 employees. Within its framework, new models of work organization were implemented, aimed at reducing the environmental footprint, as well as "green cards" - specific instructions for safety and decarbonization, tailored to the specifics of each workplace. Some of the employees were also equipped with top-class personal protective equipment. The company also presented the progress on part of the current investment program "Investments for Progress. Bulgaria 2027" worth 400 million euros and plans to increase the capacity for cathode copper production by 50% - up to 340,000 tons per year. The expansion is expected to contribute to the sustainable development of the industry and economic growth, while supporting European policies for energy transformation. Cathode copper is a major export of Bulgaria. Aurubis Bulgaria AD is a leading company with structural importance for the country's economy. The company is part of the Hamburg-based Aurubis Group (Aurubis AG) - a leading global supplier of non-ferrous metals.

A program worth nearly 1 million euros will provide businesses with the opportunity to raise financing through the capital market. The Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE) and the Executive Agency for the Promotion of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (BSMEPA) are launching a joint project to improve access to financing for businesses through the capital market. The project will cover 100% of the costs incurred by companies for preparation and listing. The funds are intended to support about 20 companies, which will be able to apply within 3 years. The program is aimed at companies that plan to raise financing and trade on the BSE regulated market, the BEAM Growth Market, as well as the SpaceCrowd crowdfunding platform. Companies considering raising financing through the Bulgarian Stock Exchange will be able to benefit from covering the costs of consulting, legal and accounting services, through the complete preparation of an initial public offering - preparing a prospectus and a marketing campaign for investors, to paying fees to the Exchange, the Financial Supervision Commission and the Central Depository.

Assen Milkov Hristov has been dismissed from his position as a member of the Supervisory Board of Eurohold Bulgaria AD. The decision was voted on by the extraordinary general meeting of the company's shareholders. Milen Assenov Hristov has been elected as a new member of the Supervisory Board of Eurohold Bulgaria. The general meeting determined the monthly remuneration of the newly elected member of the supervisory board in the gross amount of EUR 623.73. The remaining members of the supervisory board are Dimitar Dimitrov - Deputy Chairman, Ivaylo Angarski - independent member, Radi Georgiev, Kustaa Lauri Aima - independent member, Ms. Luis Gabriel Roman. Eurohold Bulgaria is a leading independent business group in Central and Southeastern Europe with leadership positions in the energy and insurance business. Its main activity is related to the creation, acquisition and management of participations and financing of related enterprises. The holding is the owner of a large energy group in Bulgaria - Electrohold, as well as Euroins Insurance Group.

Europe is turning to coal as a fuel for electricity generation again, not because it has rethought the Green Deal, but because the war in the Middle East has revived old fears of expensive and unreliable gas. The clearest signal came from Italy: the government has postponed the final closure of its four coal-fired power plants until 2038, instead of the original target of 2025, and Energy Minister Gilberto Picchetto Frattini has said that the plants could be reactivated if gas prices rise above €70/MWh. This is an emergency scenario, not a turning point in energy policy. Coal accounts for only about 1% of Italy’s electricity generation, but four plants remain on standby – two on the mainland and two in Sardinia. The logic is simple: if gas becomes too expensive or difficult to access, the country wants a reserve that can be brought on quickly. Italy is no exception. Germany is also allowing for a delay in the closure of some coal-fired capacity if the energy crisis deepens. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has signaled that industrial security will not be sacrificed mechanically for the sake of interim schedules, although the legal deadline for exiting coal remains 2038. Poland remains the EU’s most coal-dependent major economy, while Romania, the Czech Republic, Greece, France and Spain are already operating with more flexible deadlines or reserve capacities. The reason is a combination of three pressures: expensive gas, supply risks and a lack of sufficiently flexible capacities. After the start of the conflict in the Middle East, the European Commission warned that dependence on imported fossil fuels remains a structural weakness: over half of the energy consumed in Europe is imported, and in 2025 the EU paid around €340 billion for fossil fuels. Reuters reported that Brussels is preparing measures for tax breaks on electricity, coordinated filling of gas storage facilities and temporary support for industry, rather than a return to heavy market interventions as in 2022. But the economics of coal remain unfavorable. With carbon prices around 74-76 euros per tonne in the second half of April 2026, lignite and hard coal production is difficult to compete without subsidies or capacity payments. The effect on electricity prices is therefore twofold: in a short-term crisis, coal-fired power plants can limit peaks by adding available capacity; in a normal market regime, however, they usually raise the marginal price because they bear high CO₂ costs. This explains why the return is more of an insurance policy than a revival. The structural trend in the EU is the opposite: in 2025, wind and solar produced 30.1% of the EU’s electricity, while all fossil fuels produced 29%. The European Commission reported that emissions in the sectors covered by the EU ETS decreased by 1.3% in 2025 and are half the levels since the scheme began in 2005. Bulgaria enters this picture with a more complex profile. On the one hand, the country has politically protected coal until 2038, a decision related to both energy security and the social burden of the Maritsa-Iztok complex. On the other hand, the market is already closing down capacities: AES Galabovo has started a controlled shutdown and conservation due to the expiration of the long-term power purchase agreement with NEK on May 8, 2026; over 300 employees will be laid off. ContourGlobal Maritsa Iztok 3 TPP is also changing its model. ContourGlobal has already commissioned a battery system of around 202 MW/500 MWh on the plant site, indicative of the transition from baseload coal generation to storage and balancing. The state-owned Maritsa-Iztok 2 TPP remains a key reserve, but is looking at ways to reduce its carbon footprint by co-firing biomass and lignite; the pilot project envisages a biomass share of 5%, with the aim of gradually reaching 30%. Thus, the Bulgarian question is no longer whether coal can be administratively “preserved”, but who will pay for it. With high quotas, competition from renewables and growing batteries, the plants may remain needed for winter peaks, system services and emergencies, but they can hardly operate as a cheap baseload source. In 2025, renewables overtook coal in Bulgarian generation for the first time after nuclear power. That is why Bulgaria has joined the group of countries pushing for an overhaul of the European emissions trading scheme. The demands are for more predictability, a price corridor or mechanisms to limit the sharp spikes that, according to unions and industry, threaten energy-intensive industries and coal regions. So far, Brussels has not adopted a radical change to the ETS, but has proposed amendments to the market stability reserve so that some of the quotas remain as a buffer to stabilize the market. This may buy time — probably a few years — but it does not change the direction. Coal in Europe is returning as a fire extinguisher: expensive, polluting, politically inconvenient, but still useful in a shock. For Bulgaria, the challenge is more acute: to preserve the security of the system without turning the temporary reserve into a permanent expense for the budget, industry, and consumers.

Global defense spending is set to reach a historic high of nearly $2.9 trillion in 2025, according to the latest report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Despite a slowdown in U.S. spending, the overall global growth of 2.9% is driven by massive rearmament in Europe and Asia, fueled by escalating conflicts and geopolitical tensions. The “military burden” – a measure of military spending as a share of global GDP – is at its highest point in nearly two decades. The U.S., China and Russia continue to dominate the market, accounting for more than half of global spending ($1.48 trillion). Washington saw a temporary 7.5% decline to $954 billion, which analysts attribute to the lack of new financial assistance to Ukraine last year. However, this trend is expected to be short-lived, as Congress has already approved a budget of over $1 trillion for 2026, and Donald Trump’s proposal could push the amount to $1.5 trillion in 2027. At the same time, Europe is becoming the main engine of growth, with a growth of 14% to $864 billion. The reason is twofold: the ongoing war in Ukraine and the strategic withdrawal of the United States, which is pushing European countries to take greater responsibility for their security. Germany now ranks fourth in the world with a budget of $114 billion, and Spain has exceeded the 2% of GDP threshold for defense for the first time since 1994. The military economy is most visible in Russia and Ukraine. Moscow has increased its spending to $190 billion (7.5% of GDP), while Kiev allocates an impressive 40% of its GDP to defense ($84.1 billion). In the Middle East, the picture is mixed – while tensions remain high, Israel reports a slight decline to $48.3 billion following the Gaza ceasefire in early 2025, although levels remain almost double those in 2022. In Iran, nominal growth has been swallowed up by high inflation (42%), leading to a real decline in spending. Asia and Oceania reported their strongest annual growth since 2009 (+8.5%). China remains the leader here with $336 billion, but economists are paying attention to the “reactive spending” of neighboring countries. Japan has increased its military budget to its highest share of GDP since 1958, and Taiwan has seen a 14% jump in an attempt to balance perceived threats in the region.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has unveiled a new package of sweeping tax incentives, including a 20-year tax holiday for foreigners moving to the country, as well as a sharp reduction in corporate rates for exporters and manufacturers. The measures are subject to parliamentary approval and are part of Ankara's strategy to position Turkey as a global hub for investment, capital and talent amid heightened economic and geopolitical uncertainty. The most radical measure is a 20-year tax holiday on foreign-sourced income and capital gains for individuals who have not been tax residents of Turkey in the past 3 years and who settle in the country. Taxation will only apply to income earned in Turkey. A flat 1% inheritance and gift tax is also planned for this group, as well as a simplified regime for repatriating assets from abroad. The corporate package provides for a reduction in the tax for manufacturer-exporters from 25% to 9%, and for other export companies - to 14%. The measure is particularly aggressive in transit trade, where profits within the Istanbul financial center will be practically tax-free, while outside it 95% of income will be exempt from taxation. Erdogan presents the reform as part of the ambition for Turkey to become an independent center in the new multipolar economic order, and not just a transit economy between Europe and Asia. In parallel, a single investment platform ("one-stop shop") is being created, which will unite all administrative procedures for business in one digital system. The legislative package is yet to be submitted to parliament, and the specific parameters may still undergo changes. However, analysts are already questioning the balance between aggressive tax incentives and long-term fiscal sustainability.