It is “laughable” for Rachel Reeves to claim she didn’t know the full state of the public finances until she took office, Ruth Davidson has said.
Speaking on Beth Rigby’s Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the former leader of the Scottish Conservatives accused the new chancellor of trying to “build a political narrative” in order to justify her economic plans.
Ms Reeves is expected to announce tax rises and spending cuts when she unveils her first budget in October.
She has accused the previous Conservative government of “covering up” the true state of the nation’s finances, leaving a £22bn spending hole in their wake.
But Ms Davidson said the idea Ms Reeves didn’t know what the finances are is “completely, laughably wrong”.
“You don’t get into the very guts of the figures until you’re really into the departmental small print, so you do have to be in government to properly see all of the engine,” she said.
“However, the idea that she added [some things] into that total that made this £22bn pound black hole… is nonsense.
“If you paid attention during the election campaign, almost all of the questions to anybody even vaguely related to the Treasury or to the leadership was about how are you going to afford to do this because ‘x x x’.
“So we did know about it. There’s also institutions in place to tell you about it.”
Ms Reeves always said during the election that should Labour win, they would inherit the worst economic legacy since the Second World War and “iron discipline” would be required to balance the books.
Rachel Reeves Pic: Reuters
Since taking office she has said things are even more dismal than she had expected, and that the Tories made spending commitments but failed to allocate the money to fund them.
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Her predecessor Jeremy Hunt has denied that is the case and accused Ms Reeves of using the £22bn “black hole” as a smokescreen to justify tax hikes and spending cuts she was always planning.
Labour ruled out increasing major taxes in their manifesto – such as NI, VAT and Income Tax – but reports suggest Ms Reeves could hike Inheritance Tax or Capital Gains Tax in what is expected to be a “grim” October budget.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said that Ms Reeves is being disingenuous – but “no one comes out smelling like roses”.
The Conservatives did leave a lot for the new government to clear up, according to director Paul Johnson, and “were not always honest” about the challenges ahead.
But he concluded: “The chancellor cannot honestly announce a series of tax rises in her October budget, blame them on this hole that she has just discovered, and claim that she couldn’t have known pre-election that tax rises would be needed to maintain public services. That fact was obvious to all who cared to look.”
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 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.
Related: Bitcoin may rival gold as inflation hedge over next decade — Adam Back
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.
BTC/USD, 1-year chart. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro
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.
Related: Bitcoin price can hit $250K in 2025 if Fed shifts to QE: Arthur Hayes
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.
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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.
Related: EU could fine Elon Musk’s X $1B over illicit content, disinformation
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
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.
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.
Related: NFT sales plunge 63% in Q1, but Pudgy Penguins, Doodles buck trend
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.
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