Rachel Reeves book: Shadow chancellor denies claims she copied ‘entire paragraphs’ in The Women Who Made Modern Economics
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has denied accusations of plagiarism in her new book.
The Labour frontbencher launched The Women Who Made Modern Economics this week, with the book seeking to highlight the impact of women both on the economy and on Ms Reeves herself.
But a report in the Financial Times said its reporters had found more than 20 examples of “entire sentences and paragraphs lifted from other sources without acknowledgement” within its pages – including from Wikipedia, The Guardian and a report foreword by fellow shadow minister Hilary Benn.
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A spokesperson for Ms Reeves said: “We strongly refute the accusation that has been put to us by this newspaper.”
Instead they called the incidents “inadvertent mistakes”, adding that they “will be rectified in future reprints”.
Ms Reeves’ publisher, Basic Books, defended the Labour MP, saying she never sought to “present these facts as original research”.
They added: “There is an extensive and selective bibliography of over 200 books, articles and interviews.
“Where facts are taken from multiple sources, no author would be expected to reference each and every one.”
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But, the company admitted mistakes were made, adding: “When factual sentences were taken from primary sources, they should have been rewritten and properly referenced. We acknowledge this did not happen in every case.
“As always in instances such as these, we will review all sources and ensure any omissions are rectified in future reprints.”
The US Securities and Exchange Commission, under former chair Gary Gensler, used settlements to pressure founders of decentralized finance platforms from ever working in the industry again, according to venture capital firm Founders Fund partner Joey Krug.
“The thing people don’t really know about is that the government, in many cases, went to founders of DeFi protocols […] and basically told the founders you effectively have to do a settlement with us,” Krug said on stage at the ETHDenver conference on Feb. 27.
“In many cases, they said you also have to sign a thing that says you will never work in crypto again,” he added. “By the way, this agreement, you can’t really talk about it publicly because there’s a non-disparagement clause.”
Krug’s claim adds to a crypto industry rumor dubbed “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” that says the Biden administration tried to kill the local industry through regulators’ enforcement actions and by pressuring banks to cut off or limit services to crypto firms.
“These agencies would basically go to the founders, and they would say, ‘Hey, if you don’t agree to this, you’re just going to end up in jail.’”
Krug said such civil agencies would have to defer to the Department of Justice for it to file criminal charges, but “none of these matters have been referred to the DOJ yet.” He also claimed that “none of these founders actually broke the law.”
Krug said that at first, he “didn’t really believe” such settlements existed, but some founders — who he didn’t name — later showed him their agreements.
Joey Krug (left) on stage with Axios’ Brady Dale (right) at ETHDenver 2025. Source: Turner Wright/Cointelegraph
“Sure enough, there are clauses that say you can never work in crypto again [and] you can’t talk about this to anyone,” he said.
“It was just a crazy, crazy administrative state that got really out of control.”
The SEC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Related: Saga CEO discusses crypto industry’s shift toward GOP — ETHDenver
Since 1972, the SEC has included a “gag rule” in its settlements that forbids defendants from criticizing the agency’s claims — a clause that Commissioner Hester Peirce has said “undermines regulatory integrity.”
Krug said the only way DeFi founders could comment on the settlements is if Congress asked them to testify. He added there are “a lot of founders who would love to talk about how the government basically really screwed them over if Congress asked them to testify.”
Earlier this month, the bank-regulating Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation released nearly 800 pages of so-called “pause letters” that it sent banks and finance firms over their crypto services.
Both the US House and Senate held hearings on crypto debanking in early February that heard from crypto executives on their claimed torrid dealings with trying to access financial services under the Biden administration.
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Additional reporting by Turner Wright.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission says it does not view memecoins as securities but warned any fraudulent tokens could still be subject to enforcement actions by other regulators.
The agency’s Division of Corporation Finance said in a Feb. 27 statement that, in its view, memecoins “do not involve the offer and sale of securities under the federal securities laws” and “are akin to collectibles.”
“As such, persons who participate in the offer and sale of meme coins do not need to register their transactions with the Commission,” the SEC said.
It added that memecoin buyers and holders wouldn’t be protected by US securities laws but said the fraudulent offer and sale of memecoins “may be subject to enforcement action or prosecution by other federal or state agencies.”
The SEC added it shared its views “as part of an effort to provide greater clarity on the application of the federal securities laws to crypto assets.”
US President Donald Trump has moved to cull the SEC’s regulatory oversight of the crypto space, looking to make good on one of his campaign promises. The agency launched a Crypto Task Force last month to create a framework for digital assets.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump themselves had launched memecoins just days before they entered the White House on Jan. 20, which sparked criticism from many crypto commentators and some of Trump’s supporters.
Donald Trump’s memecoin, Official Trump (TRUMP), is down nearly 83% from its peak, while Melania Trump’s token, Melania Meme (MELANIA), is down 93.5% from its high, according to CoinGecko.
The TRUMP memecoin hit a peak of $73.43 a day before Trump assumed office but is now trading at around $12.66. Source: CoinGecko
The SEC’s statement comes after ABC News reported the same day that US House Democrats are set to introduce a bill banning public officials, including presidents, from being able to issue, sponsor or endorse any security, commodity or digital asset, including memecoins.
In its statement, the SEC said that memecoins “typically have limited or no use or functionality” and “tend to experience significant market price volatility.”
It added a memecoin doesn’t fit with “any of the common financial instruments specifically enumerated in the definition of ‘security’” — such as stocks or bonds — as they don’t give a yield or rights to “future income, profits, or assets of a business.”
The SEC said a memecoin doesn’t fit under the definition of an “investment contract” under the securities-defining Howey test — defined as money invested in a common enterprise, such as a business, where investors have an expectation of profiting from the efforts of others.
Related: Former CFTC lawyer says agency should take lead on memecoin regulations
“The offer and sale of meme coins does not involve an investment in an enterprise nor is it undertaken with a reasonable expectation of profits to be derived from the entrepreneurial or managerial efforts of others,” the agency said.
“In other words, a meme coin is not itself a security.”
The SEC added that its statement doesn’t apply to memecoins inconsistent with its description of one, or any products labeled as a memecoin in a bid to hide from securities laws “by disguising a product that otherwise would constitute a security.”
“The Division will evaluate the economic realities of the particular transaction,” it said.
SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, who is leading the agency’s Crypto Task Force, said earlier this month that many memecoins “probably do not have a home in the SEC under our current set of regulations.”
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Recent efforts to “debank” crypto firms in the US revealed a “staggering” level of corruption among government officials, and the problem is not yet resolved, one banking executive said in a Feb. 27 interview during Bitcoin Investor Week.
“The magnitude of skullduggery that is happening in Washington D.C. is really incredible… and it’s not over yet,” Caitlin Long, Custodia Bank’s founder and CEO, said during a panel at the event.
In 2023, the US Federal Reserve, which regulates banks, stymied Custodia’s efforts to service crypto firms by denying the bank access to a master account, citing Custodia’s involvement in “crypto-asset-related activities.”
A master account would allow the bank to custody assets directly with the central bank and access payment rails for inter-bank transfers. Custodia took legal action against the Fed in a bid to reverse the decision.
Custodia Bank CEO Caitlin Long speaks at Bitcoin Investor Week. Source: Cointelegraph
Related: FDIC releases 790 pages of crypto-related letters in regulatory pivot
Industry outrage over alleged debanking reached a crescendo when a June 2024 lawsuit spearheaded by Coinbase resulted in the release of letters showing US banking regulators asked certain financial institutions to “pause” crypto banking activities.
US President Donald Trump, who started his term on Jan. 20, has criticized the prior administration’s approach to crypto-friendly banks and vowed to better integrate cryptocurrencies, including stablecoins, into the regulated financial system.
In a Jan. 23 executive order, Trump told agencies to prioritize “fair and open access to banking services” for digital asset firms.
Stablecoin scrum
However, the battle for regulatory clarity isn’t over, Long said. Instead, it has evolved into a multi-directional fight among different types of stablecoin issuers seeking preferential rules, she said.
There is an ongoing “scrum between the big banks… and the incumbent stablecoin issuers, and then there’s Tether,” which is not based in the US, Long said.
The result has been “this incredible flow of money that has gone from the banks and the crypto industry to people in [Washington] D.C., and they’re all going to fight,” Long said.
“I don’t know how it’s going to come out,” she added.
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