The 28th regime: what’s in it for SMEs? 

Co-organised by Accountancy Europe and MEP Axel Voss (EPP/Germany).

About

The European Commission’s “28th regime” (or EU Inc.) proposes to provide a single, optional EU-wide framework aimed at reducing fragmentation in the Single Market. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking to scale cross-border, regulatory diversity remains a key barrier, particularly in areas such as company law, reporting, taxation, insolvency law and compliance. As the EU pursues competitiveness and simplification, it is crucial to assess whether and how a 28th regime can deliver tangible benefits for Europe’s SME ecosystem.

This event will explore the practical implications of a 28th regime for SMEs, focusing on administrative burden reduction, access to finance, legal certainty, and cross-border growth. It will bring together policymakers and stakeholders to discuss design features that would make such a framework workable and attractive in practice.

Speakers

• Axel Voss, Member of the European Parliament (EPP/Germany)
• Paul Gisby, Senior Director, Accountancy Europe
• Sophia Zakari, Director, Entreprise Policy & Legal Affairs, SMEunited
• Kevin Barrett, Cabinet Expert, Commissioner Michael McGrath’s Cabinet, European Commission
• J. Scott Marcus, Associate Senior Research Fellow, Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
• Prof. Dr. Eberhard Schollmeyer, LL.M. (Emory), Ministerial Counsellor; Head of Division III A 1 at the German Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection (European Company Law, Group Law, Corporate Restructuring Law, Partnership Law)
• Moderator: Greta Koch, Accredited Assistant, European Parliament