Some European policymakers have floated the idea of selling off US debt as a way of combating US belligerence, but it may be much more difficult in practice. The United States’ geopolitical brinkmanship over Greenland has thrown its economic ties to the EU into sharp relief. European powers are considering what instruments it has to combat US belligerence, including the “nuclear option” of offloading US debt. The tone has shifted after a supposed “framework of a deal” at Davos, and US ambitions to take over Greenland have cooled, for now. But EU heads of state are still preparing possible responses to further escalation. One option was cutting off access to US markets through the so-called “trade bazooka.” If triggered, it would cut off US companies from the EU market, costing them billions. Another option is offloading the trillions of dollars in US assets held in Europe. Read more
Proposed restrictions under the US CLARITY Act could drive demand for offshore and synthetic dollar products as investors seek yield outside regulated markets, experts warn. The proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields under the US CLARITY Act risk driving capital out of regulated markets and into offshore, opaque financial structures. Colin Butler, head of markets at Mega Matrix, said banning compliant stablecoins from offering yield would not protect the US financial system, but instead sideline regulated institutions while accelerating capital migration beyond US oversight. “There’s always going to be demand for yield,” Butler told Cointelegraph, adding that if compliant stablecoins can’t offer it, capital will simply move “offshore or into synthetic structures that sit outside the regulatory perimeter.” Read more
Investors and crypto users warn the proposed unrealized gains tax could drive an exodus of capital and talent. The Netherlands plans to tax unrealized capital gains on a range of investments, including stocks, bonds and cryptocurrencies, sparking warnings of capital flight. A majority of lawmakers in the Dutch parliament appear ready to back changes to the country’s Box 3 asset tax regime, which would require investors to pay annual tax on both realized and unrealized gains, even if assets have not been sold, NL Times reported on Tuesday. The plan follows court rulings that struck down the existing system for relying on assumed, rather than actual, returns. The Tweede Kamer (House of Representatives) debated the proposal again this week, with more than 130 questions put to caretaker State Secretary for Taxation Eugène Heijnen. Read more