DGKV was one of the only two international law firms invited to participate in the matchmaking event within the 6th Summit of Heads of Government of Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) and China, held in Budapest, Hungary on 27th November 2017. 
In order to promote the development of China-CEEC investment and trade and to create a platform for cooperation and exchanges between enterprises, Bank of co-hosted the China-CEEC SMEs Matchmaking Event as a Sub-Form in the 7th China-CEEC Economic and Trade Forum during the 6th Meeting of Heads of Government of CEEC and China (the “16+1 Summit”). This is the first time SMEs cross-border matchmaking featured. More than 400 enterprises from China and CEEC participated to discuss cooperation and seek opportunities. China’s prime minister Li Keqiang said the government plans to provide an additional funding of USD 3 bln to support development projects in Central and Eastern Europe. 
The idea of a cooperation platform between Central and Eastern European Countries and China – shortly referred to as “16+1” – was conceived after the first China–Central and Eastern European Countries Economic and Trade Forum that was held in 2011 in Budapest. The 16+1 format is an initiative by the People’s Republic of China aimed at intensifying and expanding cooperation with 11 EU Member States and 5 Balkan countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Macedonia) in the fields of investments, transport, finance, science, education, and culture. The next summit is planned to be held in Sofia, Bulgaria.