Editing Economy of Cyprus (section)

==Role as a financial hub==
[[File:Bank of Cyprus new and huge offices in Aglandjia suberb of Nicosia Republic of Cyprus.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Bank of Cyprus]] offices in [[Aglandjia]], [[Nicosia]].]]
In the years following the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] it gained great popularity as a portal for investment from the West into Russia and Eastern Europe,<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.economist.com/node/21525458 | title=The midget and the mighty | work=Economist | date=6 August 2012}}</ref> becoming for companies of that origin the most common tax haven. More recently, there have been increasing investment flows from the West through Cyprus into Asia, particularly China and [[India]], South America and the Middle East. In addition, businesses from outside the EU use Cyprus as their entry-point for investment into Europe. The [[Business service provider|business services]] sector remains the fastest growing sector of the economy, and had overtaken all other sectors in importance. [[Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency|CIPA]] has been fundamental towards this trend.<ref>[http://www.cyprus-mail.com/investments/investments-worth-billions-pipeline/20120913 Investments worth Billions in the Pipeline] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121121062155/http://www.cyprus-mail.com/investments/investments-worth-billions-pipeline/20120913 |date=21 November 2012 }} Cyprus-Mail – 13 September 2012</ref>

Following the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]], Cyprus businesses and individuals have come under scrutiny and criticism for allowing EU and US sanctions to be breached with belated attempts to stop them or bring the culprits to justice. A number of professional law and accounting firms have been identified as helping Russian Oligarchs evade sanctions.<ref>{{cite web |title='Our credibility must be safeguarded': Cyprus in turmoil after Russia sanctions |website=[[TheGuardian.com]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/22/cyprus-russia-sanctions-us-uk |date=22 April 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Cyprus handed 800-page US dossier on Russia sanctions breaches |website=[[TheGuardian.com]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/09/cyprus-handed-800-page-us-dossier-on-russia-sanctions-breaches |date=9 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Five law firms under sanctions-busting spotlight |url=https://www.financialmirror.com/2023/05/18/five-law-firms-under-sanctions-busting-spotlight/ |date=18 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=As sanctions loomed, accounting giant PwC scrambled to keep powerful Russians a step ahead |url=https://www.icij.org/investigations/cyprus-confidential/pwc-cyprus-russia-oligarchs-ukraine-sanctions/ |date=14 November 2023}}</ref> 

In January 2024, during a Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, Cypriot President [[Nikos Christodoulides]] maintained that Cyprus had fully implemented all European Union sanctions against Russia.<ref>{{cite web |title=Address by His Excellency Mr Nikos CHRISTODOULIDES, President of the Republic of Cyprus |url=https://vodmanager.coe.int/coe/webcast/coe/2024-01-23-1/en/4 |website=COE.INT |publisher=Council of Europe |access-date=21 May 2024}}</ref> Around the same time of his speech, it was reported that Russian deposits held in Cypriot banks had fallen 76% from 2014 to 2022. The number of Russian clients using Cypriot banks also dropped 82% in the same period.<ref>{{cite web |title=Why is Cyprus seeing Russian bank deposits plunge? |url=https://www.euronews.com/business/2024/01/24/why-is-cyprus-seeing-russian-bank-deposits-plunge |website=Euronews |access-date=21 May 2024}}</ref>