Thursday, April 16, 2026

Headlines

Money

Bank branch manager has been stealing from clients for 17 years

The officers of the 3rd Bureau, 2nd Unit of the Criminal Police Department of the Riga Regional Department of the State Police have sent to the prosecutor’s office a case for the initiation of criminal prosecution against a bank employee for economic crimes committed over a period of 17 years. While holding the position of branch manager at the bank, the suspect, without the knowledge of clients, carried out unlawful operations with financial instruments in their name, thereby obtaining money belonging to the bank’s clients. The credit institution has compensated […]

Because of heating, we are ready to get sick more and eat less

Rising heating costs threaten to affect not only daily expenses but also quality of life. Latvian households will face a significant financial burden in the upcoming heating season – only 30% will be able to pay their heating bills without difficulty, while 67% plan to limit their everyday spending, and 3% already predict that they will not be able to pay their bills at all, according to a survey conducted by the bank Citadele. The payment of bills for the upcoming heating season […]

The road use fees will be significantly increased

Starting from the first day of 2026, the road user charge will increase significantly – the largest rise in the rate will affect owners of the most environmentally friendly (Euro VI) internal combustion engine heavy goods vehicles. This draft law has been prepared by the Ministry of Transport. One of the reasons for increasing the rates is unscrupulous drivers who, by avoiding roads subject to the charge, damage roads that are not designed to withstand such heavy loads. The Ministry of Transport informs that it has been established […]

The State Revenue Service catches an envelope wage payer red-handed

A criminal proceeding has been initiated in the State Revenue Service Tax and Customs Police Department regarding the payment of “envelope” wages in a company engaged in the installation, maintenance, and repair of ventilation and air-conditioning equipment. During carefully planned operational activities, the payment of “envelope” wages was stopped precisely at the moment they were being paid. The total amount of unpaid personal income tax and mandatory state social insurance contributions will still be clarified […]

Construction workers want a higher minimum wage – 1155 euros

The Latvian Construction Sector Trade Union wants to increase the minimum wage in the sector by 10% – to 1,155.64 euros per month. The minimum wage set by law in the country is 740 euros per month. The trade union reminds that currently the minimum wage in the construction sector is determined by a general agreement that has been in force since 2019. At present, the general agreement stipulates a monthly minimum wage of 1,050 euros and an hourly rate of 6.29 […]

Accenture and Linde Gas – the fairest payers of remuneration in Latvia

The fairest remuneration in the small and medium-sized enterprise category is paid by Linde Gas, while in the large enterprise category it is paid by Accenture’s Latvian branch, according to the remuneration research and management consulting company Figure Baltic Advisory. The authors of the study point out that this year there has again been fierce competition, confirming that employers are paying increasing attention to fair remuneration. Several organizations rank among the payers of the fairest remuneration […]

Altum could start issuing regional “Vainis’ loans” as early as this year: immigrants will also be eligible to apply

“Active preparatory work is currently underway, but it is planned that the new application program will be opened at the end of October or the beginning of November,” Altum head Reinis Bērziņš told Inc. Until then, the program regulations still have to be approved by the Cabinet of Ministers. Loans will be available to natural persons who are at least 18 years old and to those who, at the time of the final loan repayment, will not have exceeded the age of 65. […]

Valmiermuiža beer gives in: will be sold to Cēsu alus

At the end of August, the owner of Valmiermuiža Beer, Aigars Ruņģis, issued a statement in which, complaining about unfavorable conditions for the small brewery business, he questioned the usefulness of investing in development. Now the owner announces that he is ready to join Cēsu alus, which belongs to Finns. At the end of August, the owner of Valmiermuiža Beer, Aigars Ruņģis, issued a statement in which, complaining about unfavorable conditions for the small brewery business, he questioned the usefulness of investing in development. Now the owner […]

They want to patch the budget by draining Latvenergo: It is proposed to leave only 10% of the profit

Contrary to what was planned during the preparation of the 2025 budget and approved in the Saeima, namely that state-owned enterprises would have to pay 70% of their annual profit into the state budget as dividends until 2027, the government has now put forward an initiative stipulating that, starting already next year, the amount to be paid out as dividends must be at least 90%. This is evidenced by the agenda of the Cabinet of Ministers meeting on 2 September […]

New opportunities for those rejected by banks: Flow has received authorization for crowdfunding

For new entrepreneurs who are often refused the necessary start-up funding by banks, there is now another option – the supervisory committee of the Bank of Latvia has granted SIA Flow permission to provide crowdfunding services. Now there are already five companies offering such services. Flow is registered in the register of crowdfunding service providers with the right to facilitate the granting of loans and to offer, through crowdfunding […]