What a difference a year makes. Only a few months ago, Central and Eastern Europe was divided into two separate camps. Bankers were falling over each other to finance and invest in a small number of what they saw as the good countries - the Visigrad Four, consisting of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. The rest of the region was dismissed as either bad or ugly and was kept as far off bankers' radar screens as possible.

Since then, the mood has changed significantly. Bankers are just as enthusiastic about the Visigrad Four countries, which are still in line for EU membership in the next five years. But more investment banks are now looking further east with much more enthusiasm and even regarding Russia once again as a viable place to do business.