Press review - Week of 21 April 2025

Press review – Week of 21 April 2025

This week’s press review covers the release of Prince Paul of Romania by French authorities, despite a European arrest warrant issued by Bucharest. It also covers the decision handed down by the Paris Court of Appeal ordering the AMF to re-examine the conditions of the demerger of the Vivendi group. It also looks back at the first sanctions imposed by the European Commission under the Digital Market Act, and at the opening of legal proceedings against the former Korean president for corruption.

#European Arrest Warrant:

Prince Paul of Romania released in Paris after being targeted by an arrest warrant

Prince Paul of Romania was released in Paris on April 16 and placed under judicial supervision after being arrested under a European arrest warrant issued by Romania. Bucharest seeks his extradition to serve a sentence of three years and three months in prison for influence peddling and complicity, related to a property restitution case between 2006 and 2013. He is accused of collaborating with fraudsters to reclaim properties as an heir. His defence criticizes the political and judicial harassment by the Romanian state and praises France for not becoming an additional instrument of this. The extradition chamber had already rejected his extradition request in 2023 due to risks of violating fundamental rights. A new hearing is scheduled for May 14. > Read article

#AMF litigation:

Court of Appeal Asks the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) to Reexamine Terms of Vivendi Spin-Off

The Paris Court of Appeal has ordered the AMF (France’s financial markets regulator) to reexamine the terms of Vivendi’s spin-off, following an appeal by minority fund Ciam. The spin-off itself is not being challenged, but the Court considers that Vivendi is “effectively controlled” by Vincent Bolloré, contradicting the AMF’s initial assessment. This effective control could trigger an obligation to launch a mandatory buyout offer for shareholders. The ruling overturns an AMF decision deemed insufficiently justified. The AMF must now reassess the implications of the spin-off and its potential consequences for minority shareholders. > Read article

#Ethics and Compliance:

The European Commission imposes substantial fines on Meta and Apple, the first under the regulation aimed at limiting the power of digital giants

On 23 April, 2025, the European Commission imposed the first fines under the Digital Market Act, also known as the “DMA”, which aims to put an end to the dominant position of major tech players and punish abusive behavior. These sanctions were imposed on Apple and Facebook for amounts of 500 million and 200 million euros respectively. Apple, which filed an appeal, was accused of hindering the ability of application providers in the app store to offer their users more advantageous rates through other channels. Meta, for its part, was accused of failing to obtain the consent of its users to combine data from different applications to create advertising profiles. > Read article

#White collar crime:

South Korea: former president Moon Jae-in charged with corruption

On 24 April, 2025, the Jeonju District Prosecutors’ Office announced that it had filed charges against ex-president Moon Jae-in for corruption. The former head of state, in office between 2017 and 2022, is accused of having facilitated his son-in-law’s access to the position of managing director of the airline “Thai Easter Jet” and of having received, in this regard, the equivalent of 132,000 euros. The Public Prosecutor’s Office also considers that the income and benefits received by Moon Jae-In’s son-in-law were in no way justified in view of his skills and duties, and in fact constituted “bribes” intended for the former president. > Read article