For years, Austrian lenders Erste Bank and Raiffeisen Bank have enjoyed strong profits at their central and eastern European operations, but with growth in these economies slowing, more recent results suggest that they may need to rethink their strategies in the region.
The stand-off between Russia and Ukraine, and the subsequent sanctions imposed on Russia and fall in the value of its currency, has negatively impacted upon the economies of almost all former Soviet republics. In Georgia, however, the country's banks are faring well, in no small part because of the central bank's conservative approach.
With the six-month drop in the global oil price stinging the Russian economy, it looked as if the country's government would introduce reforms to protect it against future shocks. But with prices on the brink of a recovery, this positive momentum towards change is in danger of being lost.
Hungary has enjoyed stronger economic growth than many of its European neighbours in recent years, but the country's minister of economy Mihály Varga is wary of taking this success for granted, insisting that the country's long-term outlook hinges on a number of external factors, from the recovery of the eurozone to a resolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
As the need to resolve the eurozone crisis intensifies, member states seem to be moving further apart on key issues, including the architecture of the union and the terms of Greece's bail-out package. But while political rifts open up, many economists agree that the only way forward is by working towards greater economic integration.
From dealing with the knock-on effects of the US and EU sanctions on Russia to preparing for the adoption of the euro, Lithuania's finance minister Rimantas Šadžius has been kept busy this year. But, despite the headwinds, Lithuania has managed to record one of the highest GDP growth rates in Europe.