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Today is King Charles’s first King’s Speech as monarch.

Update: First King’s Speech in decades as tougher sentences for serious offenders announced

This matters to him, not only because he knows the world will be looking to see if he does something differently (he won’t – continuity matters) – and not only because it could be an opportunity to say something about his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in a new setting.

The pressure will also be on because we all know he will have to announce – without flinching – measures we remember from his time as Prince of Wales that he is bound to dislike, rolling back some environmental protections close to his heart.

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The cameras will be there to record any involuntary reactions and indications of dissent – yet he has practised all his life to ensure there won’t be. It will be one of the many moments he uses to show he understands what it means to be King.

This is also Rishi Sunak’s first King’s Speech as prime minister. The last, 18 months ago, came when Boris Johnson was in the hot seat in Number 10, weeks from him being turfed out. His successor’s job is to defy gravity and try and make sure it isn’t his last too.

It is one of the top five moments in Number 10’s calendar for the autumn, alongside the conference speech, reshuffle, Autumn Statement and net zero announcement. It is also, arguably, the hardest of the five to use to send a clear political message. His job is altogether harder than the King’s.

The Gracious Address, as the event is also known, was not conceived to be an especially useful PR moment for the government. It is the day when the monarch, at the behest of the government, sets out the laws which ministers would like to pass in the coming 12 to 18 months. However, a bill being on the list is neither a necessary precondition – nor its absence from the King’s Speech a hindrance – to something entering the statute book.

The previous Queen’s Speech in May 2022 included 31 bills – parliament passed 43 bills over the course of the following 18-month session – showing there is a weak relationship between the speech and future laws at best. As such it is a moment simply when Whitehall, and the prime minister, are forced to prioritise what he cares about.

Read more:
What can we expect from the King’s Speech?

PM to give green light to system awarding oil and gas licences

Choosing what to leave out tells you where a government’s weaknesses lie

That is why what is not in the King’s Speech is almost as important as what is. Because choosing what to leave out tells you about where a government’s weaknesses lie as much as the bills that are in tell you about the message it wants to send.

Which is where the first great big con trick of the day comes in: the concept of “draft” bills. For we are likely a year, and no more than 14 months, away from a general election. Anything with the word “draft” in the King’s Speech has next to no chance of becoming law before the general election, which currently the Tories are on course to lose.

So anything with “draft” appended, or absent altogether, is not a priority and given limited space, and in this session has a relatively low chance of succeeding.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delivers a speech setting out how he will address the dangers presented by artificial intelligence while harnessing its benefits at the Royal Society, Carlton House Terrace, in London. Picture date: Thursday October 26, 2023.

Where does that leave us this week?

Laws to set up Great British Railways are unlikely to form part of a bill, for instance. This is the legislation to create a public body that would cover almost all of the rail network. This was a Boris Johnson priority – it never seemed to be as much of a Rishi Sunak one. Officials would tell you it is still happening: there’s a Derby HQ and a transition team. Let’s see what happens.

Then there was the idea of legislation in the King’s Speech to scrap the rules around nutrient neutrality. This is the one-time EU law that blocked new housing developments in certain areas where there was too much “nutrient pollution” – seen by this government as a block on housebuilding. Labour argues developers should pollute rivers less in the first place.

The government announced it would do away with this EU-inherited law to big fanfare in September but lost a vote on this in the Lords. At one point, Number 10 wanted a standalone bill in Tuesday’s King’s Speech. But it’s controversial, Labour opposes it, and they’ve decided not to risk time in parliament on that plan.

The government claims it’ll find other ways to achieve the same goal using secondary legislation, but it’s not clear they can entirely scrap this EU rule. This tells us something about the government’s strength.

In the same vein, a law to ban gay conversion therapy will not become law before the next election after being downgraded to a draft bill, which means there’s a lot more discussion and change before it takes form. This is likely to have been downgraded because of Tory splits. Some Tory MPs want to outlaw what they see as an “abhorrent” practice.

Other Tories fear such a ban may unintentionally criminalise parents or teachers giving gender identity advice to children. There isn’t an easy way through, and despite many discussions with the chief whip, it is now heading for pre-legislative scrutiny and an uncertain future.

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Royals: What’s changed since the Queen’s death?

What is in it?

Number 10 claims there are three priorities: “future prosperity of the United Kingdom”, “seize economic opportunities” and “deliver a brighter future”. In fact, it’s all about grabbing attention.

Suella Braverman, the camera-friendly home secretary, has been deployed to attract the biggest headlines of all, with a Vandalism Bill to outlaw tents and charities giving tents to the homeless.

This comes on top of other eye-catching measures like legislation for warrantless searches to retrieve stolen phones, visible with the “find my iPhone” app. The legislation allows police to go into a property where a phone is without a warrant.

There’s also the crime and justice measures you heard about at the Tory conference – including tougher sentences for prolific offenders, albeit announced in the same week as the latest prison statistics and alongside legislation to allow the government to rent prison places abroad. Meanwhile, there will also be powers to give judges more powers to force criminals to attend sentence hearings.

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King stumbles during royal visit

Attempts to mine dividing lines with Labour

There are attempts to mine environmental dividing lines with Labour – with a law to mandate annual oil and gas licensing to bolster the UK’s energy security and reduce dependence on imports from overseas which is designed to help the Tories, particularly in Scotland.

There is also likely to be the “defence of motorists” measures, limiting council powers on clean air zones and Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, as the Tories push on with their post-Uxbridge drive to prioritise the cost of living over green issues.

Then there are two big housing measures, both of which are not without their problems.

There will be a bill to abolish leaseholds on newly built houses, which means all new houses must be sold as freehold. New flats can be leasehold but only in very exceptional circumstances.

The government says this is a big deal but the outstanding question is what happens to existing properties, and I understand no decision has been made on when to end ground rent or where to cap it – that is for discussions with the Treasury.

Then there is the Renters’ Reform Bill, which is already in parliament but only just got its second reading, allowing it to be carried over into the next session. A number of MP landlords are unhappy about an end to no-fault evictions. Although this appears to have been subject to delay, I understand it could still be implemented before the election after the Levelling Up department agreed to fund the Ministry of Justice to ensure the courts can cope with the necessary extra work.

Does this amount to another relaunch? No. Will it change the dial? With so few genuinely new announcements, it seems hard to imagine so.

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King says climate change ‘the most existential challenge of all’

Yet nothing at this stage of the political cycle is done without the election being at the forefront of the government’s mind, despite all the obstacles.

Everything has been pre-tested on public opinion, and the government is still able to make so much more noise than the opposition that warts and all, what it says at this stage still matters. Hard, yes. Impossible, no.

King’s Speech live: Watch our special programme on Sky News today, hosted by Sophy Ridge, from 1030. You will also be able to follow it live on the app and website.

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Solana’s Loopscale pauses lending after $5.8M hack

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<div>Solana's Loopscale pauses lending after .8M hack</div>

<div>Solana's Loopscale pauses lending after .8M hack</div>

Solana decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Loopscale has temporarily halted its lending markets after suffering an approximately $5.8 million exploit. 

On April 26, a hacker siphoned approximately 5.7 million USDC (USDC) and 1200 Solana (SOL) from the lending protocol after taking out a “series of undercollateralized loans”, Loopscale co-founder Mary Gooneratne said in an X post. 

The exploit only impacted Loopscale’s USDC and SOL vaults and the losses represent around 12% of Loopscale’s total value locked (TVL), Gooneratne added. 

Loopscale is “working to resume repayment functionality as soon as possible to mitigate unforeseen liquidations,” its said in an X post. 

“Our team is fully mobilized to investigate, recover funds, and ensure users are protected,” Gooneratne said.

Solana's Loopscale pauses lending after $5.8M hack
Loopscale’s ‘Genesis’ lending vaults. Source: Loopscale

In the first quarter of 2025, hackers stole more than $1.6 billion worth of crypto from exchanges and on-chain smart contracts, blockchain security firm PeckShield said in an April report. 

More than 90% of those losses are attributable to a $1.5 billion attack on ByBit, a centralized cryptocurrency exchange, by North Korean hacking outfit Lazarus Group.

Related: Crypto hacks top $1.6B in Q1 2025 — PeckShield

Unique DeFi lending model

Launched on April 10 after a six-month closed beta, Loopscale is a DeFi lending protocol designed to enhance capital efficiency by directly matching lenders and borrowers.

It also supports specialized lending markets, such as “structured credit, receivables financing, and undercollateralized lending,” Loopscale said in an April announcement shared with Cointelegraph. 

Loopscale’s order book model distinguishes it from DeFi lending peers such as Aave that aggregate cryptocurrency deposits into liquidity pools.

Solana's Loopscale pauses lending after $5.8M hack
Loopscale’s daily active users. Source: Mary Gooneratne

Loopscale’s main USDC and SOL vaults yield APRs exceeding 5% and 10%, respectively. It also supports lending markets for tokens such as JitoSOL and BONK (BONK) and looping strategies for upwards of 40 different token pairs. 

The DeFi protocol has approximately $40 million in TVL and has attracted upwards of 7,000 lenders, according to researcher OurNetwork.

Magazine: Ripple says SEC lawsuit ‘over,’ Trump at DAS, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 16 – 22

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US Senator calls for Trump impeachment, cites memecoin dinner

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US Senator calls for Trump impeachment, cites memecoin dinner

US Senator calls for Trump impeachment, cites memecoin dinner

United States Senator Jon Ossoff expressed support for impeaching President Donald Trump during an April 25 town hall, citing the President’s plan to host a private dinner for top Official Trump memecoin holders. 

“I mean, I saw just 48 hours ago, he is granting audiences to people who buy his meme coin,” said Ossoff, a Democrat, according to a report by NBC News. 

“When the sitting president of the United States is selling access for what are effectively payments directly to him. There is no question that that rises to the level of an impeachable offense.”

Senator Ossoff said he “strongly” supports impeachment proceedings during a town hall in the state of Georgia, where he is running for reelection to the Senate.

The Senator added that an impeachment is unlikely unless the Democratic Party gains control of Congress during the US midterm elections in 2026. Trump’s own Republican Party currently has a majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. 

US Senator calls for Trump impeachment, cites memecoin dinner
TRUMP holders can register to dine with the US President. Source: gettrumpmemes.com

Related: US lawmaker says TRUMP coin could risk national security

Conflicts of interest

On April 23, the Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin’s website announced plans for Trump to host an exclusive dinner at his Washington, DC golf club with the top 220 TRUMP holders. 

The website subsequently posted a leaderboard tracking top TRUMP wallets and a link to register for the event. The TRUMP token’s price has gained more than 50% since the announcement, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

The specific guest list is unclear, but the memecoin’s website states that applicants must pass a background check, “can not be from a [Know Your Customer] watchlist country,” and cannot bring any additional guests.

On April 25, the team behind TRUMP denied social media rumors that TRUMP holders need at least $300,000 to participate in an upcoming dinner with the president.

“People have been incorrectly quoting #220 on the block explorer as the cutoff. That’s wrong because it includes things like locked tokens, exchanges, market makers, and those who are not participating. Instead, you should only be going off the leaderboard,” they wrote.

Law, Politics, Senate, Donald Trump, trumpcoin, Memecoin
The TRUMP token jumped on news of the private dinner plans. Source: CoinMarketCap

Legal experts told Cointelegraph that Trump’s cryptocurrency ventures, including the TRUMP memecoin and Trump-affiliated decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol World Liberty Financial, raise significant concerns about potential conflicts of interest

“Within just a couple of days of him taking office, he’s signed a number of executive orders that are significantly going to affect the way that our crypto and digital assets industry works,” Charlyn Ho of law firm Rikka told Cointelegraph in February. 

“So if he has a personal pecuniary benefit arising from his own policies, that’s a conflict of interest.”

Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions

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Crypto sentiment recovers, but weekend liquidity risks remain

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Crypto sentiment recovers, but weekend liquidity risks remain

Crypto sentiment recovers, but weekend liquidity risks remain

Crypto investor sentiment has seen a significant recovery from global tariff concerns, but analysts warn that the market’s structural weaknesses may still result in downside momentum during periods of weekend illiquidity.

Risk appetite appeared to return among crypto investors this week after US President Donald Trump adopted a softer tone, saying that import tariffs on Chinese goods may “come down substantially.”

However, the improved investor sentiment “does not guarantee that Bitcoin will avoid volatility over the weekend,” analysts from Bitfinex exchange told Cointelegraph:

“Sentiment improvements reduce fragility, but they do not eliminate structural risks like thin weekend liquidity.” 

“Historically, weekends remain vulnerable to sharp moves — especially when open interest is high and market depth is low,” the analysts said, adding that unexpected macroeconomic news can still increase volatility during low liquidity periods.

Related: Trump fought the bond market, the bond market won: Saifedean Ammous

Bitcoin (BTC) staged a near 11% recovery during the past week, but its rally has previously been limited by Sunday liquidity dynamics.

Crypto sentiment recovers, but weekend liquidity risks remain
BTC/USD, 1-year chart. Source: Cointelegraph

Bitcoin fell below $75,000 on Sunday, April 6, despite initially decoupling from the US stock market’s $3.5 trillion drop on April 4 after US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that Trump’s tariffs may affect the economy and raise inflation.

The correction was exacerbated by the lack of weekend liquidity and the fact that Bitcoin was the only large liquid asset available for de-risking, industry watchers told Cointelegraph.

Related: US banks are ‘free to begin supporting Bitcoin’ — Michael Saylor

“While improved sentiment creates a more stable foundation, cryptocurrency markets are still susceptible to rapid movements during periods of reduced trading volume,” according to Marcin Kazmierczak, co-founder and chief operating officer of RedStone blockchain oracle firm.

“The sentiment recovery provides some cushioning, but traders should remain cautious as weekend liquidity constraints can still amplify price movements regardless of the current market mood,” he told Cointelegraph.

Crypto investors may have “maxed out on tariff-related fears”

Cryptocurrency markets may have priced in the full extent of tariff-related concerns, according to Aurelie Barthere, principal research analyst at crypto intelligence platform Nansen.

“It feels like we’ve maxed out on tariff-related fear,” she told Cointelegraph, adding:

“While many remain uncertain about where things are headed over the next month or so, it also seems like markets were just waiting for the slightest signal that we’re back in the game.”

“Whether the rally is sustainable depends on whether we can break through previous resistance levels, at least in isolation. It could have legs, as markets now seem to believe there’s a ‘Trump put’ under equities, the US dollar and US Treasurys,” Barthere added, warning of more potential volatility amid the upcoming negotiations.

Nansen previously predicted a 70% chance that crypto markets will bottom and start a recovery by June, but highlighted that the timing will depend on the outcome of tariff negotiations.

The tariff negotiations may only be “posturing” for the US to reach a trade agreement with China, which may be the “big prize” for Trump’s administration, according to Raoul Pal, founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor.

Magazine: Bitcoin’s odds of June highs, SOL’s $485M outflows, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 2 – 8

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