UK
Mel B Dedicates MBE to Women Who Are Victims of Domestic Abuse: ‘It’s Our Award Because We’ve Survived’
Mel B had a special dedication when she received her MBE on Wednesday (May 4). The Spice Girl, whose real name is Melanie Brown, was honored at Buckingham Palace for her services to charitable causes and vulnerable women. Brown has been an advocate for victims of domestic abuse since 2018, when she became involved with the charity Women’s Aid after leaving an abusive relationship herself. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The 46-year-old pop star dedicated the honor to “all the other women” who are dealing with domestic violence. She added that she felt like she was representing the “voice” of all women who had been abused, saying: “I don’t take it as it’s my award because it’s our award because we’ve survived”. Scary Spice received the award fro...
Inside Mad World, the U.K. Record Label Championing Club Culture
In late 2019, London-based duo God Colony began thinking about establishing a record label, formalizing the ideas and projects they had been working on. Over the next few months, founders Thomas Gorton and James Rand were joined by producer Raf Rundell and art director Jacob Chabeaux, and Mad World was born. Almost immediately, though, lockdown measures were announced globally and nightclubs everywhere were forced to close. The culture that had inspired Mad World suddenly faced a more uncertain future than ever before. “I think it made us more compelled to make it really happen,” Gorton tells HYPEBEAST. “Two years on Zoom and having your temperature checked at the pub drives a man mad – you end up doing totally unnecessary things like starting a record label. It was strange to start and th...
Bank of England’s PRA raises budget $31M for ‘emerging risks’ like crypto
The Bank of England’s regulatory arm has raised its budget by $31.6 million (£24.3 million) for the coming financial year saying that costs have increased due to its growing responsibilities and preparations for “emerging risks in the financial system”. According to the latest business plan released on Wednesday April 20 by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) its budget for the 2022/23 financial year is £320.9 million ($418 million), an 8.2% increase from last year. The PRA Chief Executive Sam Woods outlined its plan for the year ahead saying it was: “Committed to keeping pace with innovation and emerging risks, including the ongoing digitalization of financial services and the growth of crypto assets.” The PRA states that the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union, alon...
Bank of England’s PRA raises budget $31M for ‘emerging risks’ like crypto
The Bank of England’s regulatory arm has raised its budget by $31.6 million (£24.3 million) for the coming financial year saying that costs have increased due to its growing responsibilities and preparations for “emerging risks in the financial system”. According to the latest business plan released on Wednesday April 20 by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) its budget for the 2022/23 financial year is £320.9 million ($418 million), an 8.2% increase from last year. The PRA Chief Executive Sam Woods outlined its plan for the year ahead saying it was: “Committed to keeping pace with innovation and emerging risks, including the ongoing digitalization of financial services and the growth of crypto assets.” The PRA states that the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union, alon...
Calum Jacobs’ ‘A New Formation’ Tells How Black Players Shaped Modern Football
When Calum Jacobs started CARICOM magazine in late 2017, he had an ambitious vision for the publication. In a Kickstarter launched for the first issue, Jacobs described the project as “a series of explorative and progressive conversations in the space where the Black-British experience and football intersect,” going on to add that it would “discuss culture, politics, history and contemporary life under the unifying umbrella of football.” After almost five years, and two issues of CARICOM, Jacobs is now poised to take that message to an even larger audience with the launch of his debut book. Titled A New Formation and published by Stormzy and Penguin’s Merky Books, the book expands on Jacobs’ ambition for CARICOM, telling the stories of Black footballers and their influence on the game. Alo...
U.K. Business Owner Converts Old Pharmacy Into “Micro-Club” Experience
The upcoming Easter holiday in the U.K. will have something additional to celebrate for residents of Houghton-le-Spring: the debut of the city’s first “micro-club.” TROPI’s Bar embodies the essence of an exclusive clubbing experience. And with a capacity of just 60 patrons, exclusivity is built into its very design. Dubbed a “micro-club” by its owner, Michael Donkin, TROPI’s will take the place of a shuttered pharmacy. Donkin and his wife Steph had an eye on the spot, especially given the two simultaneously manage the adjacent Evolution Fitness gym. “It was a pharmacy originally, it was basically a double shop front,” Donkin told Chronicle Live, who reported that attendees can expect a “booming club atmosphere&...
UK defines a new plan as it seeks to become a global crypto hub
The UK will legalise the use of stablecoins to settle payments The government is also embracing NFTs, with plans to mint one this summer The Treasury Economic Secretary John Glen insisted on the need to adopt dynamic regulations The UK has shared a new plan with a series of measures toward becoming a global hub for crypto-asset technology. As per a statement published yesterday, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak noted that the measures would empower firms to invest, scale and establish innovative projects in the country. “We want to see the businesses of tomorrow – and the jobs they create – here in the UK, and by regulating effectively, we can give them the confidence they need to think and invest long-term,” he noted. Stablecoins as a payment option At the top ...
Blockchain.com’s valuation hits $14BN following newly reported raise
The exchange has completed four financing rounds since the start of 2021 Blockchain.com has a customer base of 37 million users and has processed more than $1 trillion in transactions UK-based cryptocurrency exchange Blockchain.com has reportedly concluded a funding round led by one of its previous investors, Lightspeed Ventures Partners, as per a Thursday report from Bloomberg. Independent investment management firm Baillie Gifford had heavy involvement in the raise, which comes at a $14 billion market valuation – more than double the valuation during the previous financing round completed by the exchange. The report didn’t feature details of the sum raised, and neither party involved has made any official communication. In addition to running a platform for trading crypto ass...
Weekly Report: Thailand, Honduras and Malaysia mull over crypto adoption as Ireland and UK regulators clamp down on ads
Honduras’ central bank has denied any plans of adopting a Bitcoin legal tender The Thai SEC cites risks to financial and economic stability as the reason why it has banned crypto payments The Central Bank of Ireland warns against the “risky and speculative nature” of crypto and the aggressive promotion/ ads coming with it The Bank of England says the Ukraine situation has made it even more essential to establish effective policies frameworks around crypto Malaysia’s ministry of finance stands firm against the idea of legalising crypto, says the country will focus on a CBDC instead This week, the focus has been on crypto regulation, with authorities and market regulators around the world making statements in that regard. Here are the details: Honduras central bank di...
Crypto ads ‘red alert’ escalates as the ASA sends an enforcement notice
The list of firms that received the ASA’s enforcement notice includes past offenders The served firms have until May 2 to review their ads and ensure they comply with the outlined rules The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has issued a notice to 50 companies offering crypto services in the UK, demanding that they review their crypto advertisements by May 2, else they risk facing more decisive action. Following a crypto ad red alert notice it issued last November, the ASA is on a path of enforcing an industry-wide crackdown. The watchdog considers it necessary to fight against the “misleading and irresponsible” advertisements around crypto products. “Crypto has exploded in popularity in recent years. We’re concerned that people might be enticed...
UK’s financial regulator orders shut down of crypto ATMs
The FCA says all crypto ATMs in the UK have been operating illegally The regulator, therefore, ordered operators of crypto-to-cash machines to halt their services or face legal consequences The FCA, UK’s financial conduct regulator, has banned the operation of crypto ATMs in the country. The financial authority stated in a Friday notice that it had asked all operators of these machines to suspend their activities or “face enforcement action.” No crypto ATM operator has received approval The order comes on the grounds that the operators have not registered with the regulator. The FCA pointed out that it has not yet given the green light to offer crypto ATM services to any of the crypto-entities that have completed registration. “Crypto ATMs offering crypto asset exch...
Here’s why the UK’s FCA is not impressed with EQONEX’s agreement with Bifinity
The FCA says the agreement granted Bifinity certain contractual rights over Eqonex The UK financial markets regulator insists it retains powers to suspend an unfit firm’s crypoasset registration The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority yesterday sent out a note indicating that it is still keeping a close eye on Binance. The message came on the heels of Binance’s subsidiary pay tech firm Bifinity completing a strategic agreement with FCA-regulated EQONEX Limited. Binance launched payment tech company Bifinity yesterday, noting that EQONEX, the first publicly listed digital asset firm in the US, would receive a $36 million convertible loan as part of the agreement. Further, the cooperation would also give Bifinity the right to appoint the CEO, CFO, and Chief Legal Officer of EQ...
