Araratcement & Tsarukyan network: The seal on Gagik Tsarukyan’s Ararat brandy/wine/vodka plant was lifted, but production still hasn’t restarted as tax inspections continue; meanwhile workers at other Multi Group firms remain in limbo after closures, with protests continuing. SME finance: Ardshinbank relaunched its SME digital platform, letting small businesses apply online and access automated lending up to AMD 20m (up to 60 months). EU market access: An EU trade committee backed temporary tariff relief for nearly 80% of Armenian exports to the bloc, including broad agricultural categories like fruits and vegetables. TRIPP+ push: A new U.S. State Department TRIPP+ Enterprise Fund will oversee $201m+ for the South Caucasus/Central Asia corridor; Konstantin Sokolov was named chairman, raising fresh conflict-of-interest questions. AI & infrastructure spending: Armenia plans to buy $25m of high-performance computing for AI development, and will raise the South Caucasus Railway subsidy by AMD 65.2m. Energy/transport trade: Azerbaijan exported $17.1m to Armenia in Jan–Jun, while Armenia’s Russia trade turnover fell about 20.5% in the first five months. Digitalization & connectivity: Viva launched Armenia’s first 5G+ network across Yerevan and six regions, and Starlink donated 56 emergency internet terminals. Politics in court: Pashinyan faces more defamation lawsuits, including from former MPs Sofia Ovsepyan and Samvel Karapetyan-linked cases.