Rishi Sunak signs new deals with Serbia, Belgium and Bulgaria to tackle people smuggling

Published

2 years ago

October 6, 2023

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Rishi Sunak has signed new deals with Serbia, Belgium and Bulgaria to help target the criminal gangs who smuggle people across the Channel in small boats.

The prime minister made the announcement at the European political community summit in Spain after a whirlwind week at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester.

Mr Sunak urged European leaders to “unite” over migration.

Speaking to reporters, he said it had been a “very successful summit here working with other European countries to stop the boats”.

“This is a shared European challenge that’s very clear,” he said.

“What I was able to do here for the British people is sign new deals with Serbia, Belgium and Bulgaria that will help combat the criminal gangs upstream.”

While details of the deals are light, Downing Street said the deal with Belgium involved a “commitment to increase our bilateral exchange of expertise” as well using advanced detection technology to “identify and disrupt people smuggling through Belgium and onwards to the UK”.

Polling reveals how well Sunak’s conference speech went down – politics latest

Meanwhile the deals with Serbia and Bulgaria will focus on prosecuting and disrupting the criminal gangs and sharing intelligence.

It comes following reports in The Daily Telegraph that the UK is set to sign a deal with the EU’s border agency to obtain access to the bloc’s intelligence on migration.

The Telegraph reported officials in London and Brussels have concluded the substance of the agreement, which sources said is in the “final stages” and could be announced this week.

Under the deal, domestic agencies would be able to monitor the entirety of the EU’s external borders rather than just shared frontiers.

Elsewhere in the interview with reporters, the prime minister addressed questions over his party conference speech, in which he touched on a range of issues including trans rights and HS2.

Mr Sunak was asked when he made the decision to scrap the northern leg to Manchester after the transport secretary, Mark Harper, said it had been made on Tuesday – despite a video emerging suggesting it was made days earlier.

He replied: “There was a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning and the transport secretary legally is the person who makes that decision.

“But of course, this is something that we’ve been working on for a while. It’s right – because this is a very big decision involving tens of billions of pounds – it’s not something that you do very quickly.

“The decision formally was made right at the end.

“There was that cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning, but taking a step back from the process here, what’s important is the decision and I’ve decided that the right thing to do is to take that £36bn that would have been spent on the rest of this project and instead spend that on hundreds of projects across the entire country, which will deliver more benefit for people quicker.”

During his speech Mr Sunak also drew on the issue of trans rights.

He told the conference hall: “We shouldn’t get bullied into believing that people can be any sex they want to be. They can’t; a man is a man and a woman is a woman. That’s just common sense.”

His comments attracted some criticism, including from Green Party MP Caroline Lucas, who accused Mr Sunak of using “more nasty divisiveness from the hard right playbook”.

Home Office data published today shows that transgender identity hate crimes rose by 11% from 4,262 offences to 4,732 in the year ending March 2023.

Asked whether he regretted his remarks, Mr Sunak said: “I think most people watching this programme will think that that’s common sense and it’s just a simple fact of biology.

“Now, of course, this is always going to be a compassionate, tolerant country – but we can’t ignore fundamental facts of biology and saying those things shouldn’t be controversial.”

Politics

Bitcoin ETFs lose $326M amid ‘evolving’ dynamic with TradFi markets

Published

2 hours ago

April 9, 2025

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Bitcoin ETFs lose 6M amid ‘evolving’ dynamic with TradFi markets

The evolving relationship between Bitcoin and traditional financial markets is under renewed pressure as global investors flee risk assets amid intensifying US trade tensions.

US-listed spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded their fourth consecutive day of outflows on April 8, with more than $326 million in net redemptions across products, according to data from Farside Investors.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) saw the largest sell-off of over $252 million, its biggest daily outflow since Feb. 26.

Bitcoin ETFs lose $326M amid ‘evolving’ dynamic with TradFi markets — *Bitcoin ETF flows, US dollars, millions. Source:* *Farside Investors*

The selling pressure follows US President Donald Trump’s April 2 announcement of sweeping reciprocal import tariffs, which triggered a historic $5 trillion wipeout in the S&P 500 over two days.

The delayed crypto market turbulence after the tariff-related sell-off in traditional markets highlights Bitcoin’s “evolving relationship with traditional markets,” according to Lennix Lai, global chief commercial officer at OKX exchange.

Lai told Cointelegraph:

“While falling 26% since January’s inauguration, Bitcoin’s relative resilience in the first two days following the tariff announcement — dropping 6% compared to Nasdaq’s 11% decline — suggests a nuanced dynamic emerging between crypto and conventional assets.”

Bitcoin initially remained firmly above the $82,000 support level but plummeted below $75,000 on Sunday, April 6.

Some industry leaders attributed Sunday’s sell-off to Bitcoin’s 24/7 liquidity mechanics, which made BTC the only large liquid asset available for de-risking over the weekend.

Bitcoin remains tied to global liquidity conditions

While there is an “encouraging sign” of a weakening correlation between Bitcoin and equities, Bitcoin’s price trajectory remains tied to global liquidity conditions, Lai said, adding:

“Though I see early signs of divergence, I believe Bitcoin remains fundamentally tied to global liquidity conditions, warranting caution amid potential market stresses — whilst gold remains as a hedge against geopolitical instability.”

“What’s most significant here isn’t just price action but Bitcoin’s growing conceptual influence — people increasingly view it as a valid strategic reserve asset for diversification in chaotic traditional markets,” Lai added.

Other analysts also see the growing money supply as Bitcoin’s main catalyst.

“Bitcoin trades solely based on the market expectation for the future supply of fiat,” according to Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX and chief investment officer of Maelstrom.

Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29

Politics

EU markets regulator says crypto may cause ‘broader stability issues’ as market grows

Published

5 hours ago

April 9, 2025

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EU markets regulator says crypto may cause ‘broader stability issues’ as market grows

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has warned that crypto will increasingly threaten traditional financial markets’ stability as the industry grows and becomes more entwined with traditional finance players.

“We cannot rule out that future sharp drops in crypto prices could have knock-on effects on our financial system,” ESMA’s executive director Natasha Cazenave said in an April 8 statement to the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee.

Cazenave noted, however, that crypto currently only accounts for 1% of global financial assets and is not yet significant enough to cause major “spillover effects” into traditional financial markets.

She warned that interconnections between crypto and traditional markets are rapidly growing — particularly in the more crypto-friendly US — and called for closer monitoring.

“Crypto-assets markets evolve quickly, in an often unpredictable manner, and we need to keep a close eye on these developments,” Cazenave said, adding:

“Turmoil, even in small markets, can originate or catalyze broader stability issues in our financial system.”

Cazenave’s concerns ranged from spot crypto exchange-traded funds and stablecoin use to hacks, scams and scandals — highlighting the recent $1.4 billion Bybit exploit and FTX’s collapse in November 2022.

Today in the ECON Committee, the role of crypto assets in relation to financial market stability was discussed. The European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) were present.

I raised a critical question about the digital euro.… pic.twitter.com/KST7FRBhFF

— Engin Eroglu (@EnginEroglu_FW) April 8, 2025

The European Union has already implemented several measures to safeguard against crypto risks, most notably the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation that was rolled out last year.

While Cazenave said MiCA marked a “breakthrough” for crypto regulation, she added that there is “no such thing as a safe crypto-asset” and that more rules may need to be implemented to mitigate future risks.

Her comments come as both crypto and the stock markets have experienced double-digit falls over the last few weeks as the Trump administration continues to follow through on its tariff plans.

Europe lags US in crypto adoption

While crypto adoption has accelerated in the US, Cazenave noted that over 95% of European banks remain on the sidelines, with no involvement in crypto-related activities.

However, retail participation is on the rise, with an estimated 10% to 20% of European investors having crypto exposure, which is in line with growing global interest, Cazenave said.

Most reports measuring US crypto adoption suggest that the range of adoption is between 15% and 28% of the population.

Magazine: Financial nihilism in crypto is over — It’s time to dream big again

Politics

Shaquille O’Neal gets judge’s greenlight for $11M Astrals NFT settlement

Published

7 hours ago

April 9, 2025

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Shaquille O’Neal gets judge’s greenlight for M Astrals NFT settlement

Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal has been granted final court approval to settle a class-action lawsuit for $11 million with Astrals non-fungible token (NFT) buyers.

Florida federal court judge Federico Moreno granted approval of the settlement between O’Neal and the class group led by Daniel Harper in an April 1 order made available on April 8.

The deal created a fund of up to $11 million for eligible class members and awarded $2.9 million in attorney fees and costs. All those who purchased Astrals NFTs from May 2022 to Jan. 15 and those who purchased the project’s native GLXY tokens up until mid-January are eligible.

“The fee sought by lead class counsel has been reviewed and approved as fair and reasonable by plaintiffs,” Moreno’s order read.

O’Neal was hit with the lawsuit in May 2023 over his founding and promotion of the Solana-based Astrals NFT project, which the suit claimed was an “offer and sale of unregistered securities.”

The class group said they bought Astrals NFTs and “suffered investment losses” due to O’Neal’s “conduct” in promoting the project.

In August, Judge Moreno recognized that the class suit had alleged that the former NBA player was a seller of the NFTs. O’Neal agreed to the settlement in November.

Shaquille O’Neal gets judge’s greenlight for $11M Astrals NFT settlement — *Screenshot from court order on final settlement. Source: Courtlistener*

NFT sales slump

The Astrals NFT collection consisted of 10,000 unique 3D digital collectibles created in April 2022 by the artist Damien Guimoneau in a Solana-based project that promoted a virtual world where users could socialize and play with others, including the basketball star.

There has been no activity or sales from the collection for the past two years, according to NFT marketplace OpenSea.

Overall, NFT sales are still in deep bear market territory, with just $27 million sold as of April 7, down from more than $2 billion per week at the end of 2021, according to CryptoSlam.

Magazine: 3 reasons Ethereum could turn a corner: Kain Warwick, X Hall of Flame