The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor, has published its first risk monitoring report of 2025, setting out the key risk drivers currently facing EU financial markets. ESMA finds that overall risks in EU securities markets are high, and market participants should be wary of potential market corrections. Continue reading…

by Daniel Vaknine

When employees in NGOs feel embarrassed speaking up within, it raises the risk enormously that any misconduct or unethical practice will be revealed publicly and lead to irreparable damage to the organisation’s reputation and cause. With the new enactment of whistleblower protection legislation, having a trusted whistleblower system in place within your NGO or charity is vital. Not only does this protect your organisation from scandal, but it also provides another layer of safeguard for employees and volunteers, particularly valuable in such value-based cultures. Continue reading…

Ahead of the World Consumer Rights Day on 15 March, the Commission has published  the 2025 Consumer Conditions Scoreboard, which shows that 68% of European consumers feel confident about the safety of the products that they buy, with 70% trusting that their consumer rights are respected by traders. However, data from the Scoreboard also shows that online risks for consumers persist, including scams, fake reviews, and misleading advertising practices. Continue reading…

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor, will be supporting the European Commission’s objective to simplify and reduce the reporting burden in the financial sector. The ESMA Board of Supervisors discussed in December 2024 how to best contribute to efficient simplification and burden reduction actions, while preserving the main objectives of financial stability, orderly markets and investor protection. Continue reading…

Nearly 20,000 financial promotions were withdrawn or amended in 2024 following intervention from the FCA – nearly double the amount in 2023. The regulator has highlighted concerns with cryptoasset, debt solutions, and claims management company (CMC) promotions. 9,197 CMC promotions were withdrawn in 2024. Many of these promotions were related to housing disrepair and motor finance claims targeted at vulnerable consumers. Continue reading…

by Olli Rehn

Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Friends, let me start by thanking the Hong Kong Monetary Authority for hosting this topical and thought-provoking conference. Discussing the changing global economy in “Asia’s World City” is, of course, very appropriate. As the title of the conference implies, the global economy is undergoing a transformation. In my talk today I would like to address a key aspect of this transformation, namely decoupling and fragmentation in the global economy. Is there evidence of geoeconomic fragmentation in the global trade and investment data? Or is global trade simply following the same trajectory as global economic output? There is, of course, an important difference between the paths of global trade and global output. Continue reading…

The European Commission has requested consultations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) aiming to remove unfair and illegal trade practices by China in the sphere of intellectual property. China has empowered its courts to set binding worldwide royalty rates for EU standard essential patents, without the consent of the patent owner. This pressures innovative European high-tech companies into lowering their rates on a worldwide basis, thus giving Chinese manufacturers cheaper access to those European technologies unfairly. Continue reading…

As the hub for cross-border judicial cooperation, Eurojust works together with national authorities to fight organised crime. Our support and expertise helps authorities to solve complex investigations into a variety of crime types. In 2024, we saw a number of long running cases lead to joint operations that arrested suspects, seized goods and stopped criminals in their tracks. Continue reading…

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has recently put forth a report on The Relevance of Transition Plans for Financial Stability, which looks at the role that firms’ climate transition planning and the resulting outputs – transition plans – can play for financial stability. Transition plans provide forward-looking information on how non-financial companies and financial institutions may adjust their activities in response to climate risks, which can be useful for authorities to measure and monitor climate-related financial risks. Continue reading…

The EU continues to remain a leading global humanitarian aid donor. With more than 300 million people estimated to need humanitarian assistance in 2025, the EU has on 16 January announced an initial humanitarian budget for 2025 of €1.9 billion. Continue reading…