Crypto News: Brussels Edition: Crisis shield

Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union.

The EU is set to unveil new proposals today for improving its crisis-management framework for the banking system. Europe's recovery and resolution rules for lenders have proven too inflexible for some countries, while others have faulted them for loopholes, especially when it comes to small and medium-sized banks. Though the new rules have been years in the making, they were brought into focus after the recent turmoil in the US saw several smaller lenders collapse. Concerns Europe could face a similar fallout were intensified by the woes of Credit Suisse. As we told you last month, the European Commission wants to make it easier to wind down banks that fail by tapping national deposit guarantee systems for funding to protect uninsured bank depositors above 100,000 euros. This would maintain financial stability and limit the impact on the real economy without using public funds, according to draft documents we've seen.

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Grain Fears | Ukraine's crop exports are being threatened again, risking a rise in global food prices. The government in Kyiv said yesterday that Russia has blocked inspections of vessels under a key safe-passage deal, while Poland, Hungary and Slovakia have all in recent days banned imports of Ukrainian grain over concerns the supplies are hurting their domestic markets.

Green Showdown | Greenpeace is filing a lawsuit against the European Commission over what it sees as the "greenwashing" of gas and nuclear energy in the bloc's climate rulebook. Four other environmental groups are also objecting solely to the inclusion of gas, not nuclear, in the EU taxonomy. The cases will be filed at the European Court of Justice today.

Fragmentation Fallout | Christine Lagarde warned that shifts in the world economy triggered by geopolitics pose a challenge to the European Central Bank and its peers. In a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, the ECB president said the "fragmentation of the global economy into competing blocs" may bring "far-reaching implications" for policymakers.

Cyber Defense | The commission will unveil a proposal today to boost cooperation between EU members during cyberattacks by creating a system akin to the bloc's Civil Protection Mechanism. It also includes a reserve of trusted private experts to jump in during a crisis and centers of European security infrastructure to detect attacks faster.

Ambassador Attacked | As the fighting in Sudan threatens to erupt into a full-blown civil war, the EU's foreign policy chief condemned an attack yesterday on the bloc's ambassador to the African nation in his own residence. The assault constituted "a gross violation of the Vienna Convention," Josep Borrell wrote in a tweet, calling on the Sudanese government to ensure the security of diplomatic premises and staff.

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Bullying Reports | More than one in three civil servants surveyed at the Dutch parliament have experienced inappropriate behavior from colleagues, including bullying and sexual harassment. The report from Utrecht University also found the allegations were inadequately addressed at times.

Climate Goals | A decision to reduce sanctioning powers in Germany's climate law will make it even harder for the nation to meet its emissions goals at the end of the decade, according to an influential committee of advisers. The row back was agreed by the coalition government at the end of March. Germany is aiming to cut greenhouse gases by 65% by 2030 compared to 1990-levels.

Regulation Hub | The commission will open its center for algorithmic transparency, "ECAT," in Seville today, which it says "will contribute to a safer, more predictable and trusted online environment for people and business." Experts there will be tasked with holding tech companies, most notably Elon Musk's Twitter, to strict content moderation rules.

Gershkovich Visit | The US ambassador to Russia visited detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in a Russian prison, more than two weeks after his arrest on spying charges. "We reiterate our call for his immediate release," said the envoy, Lynne Tracy, noting that he "is in good health." Meanwhile, Russia sentenced a prominent critic of Putin to the harshest sentence yet handed down to an opposition activist.

Nuclear powers within the G-7 pledged to end Russia's dominance over global atomic-fuel markets, potentially cutting off a critical source of geopolitical currency for Vladimir Putin more than a year after his invasion of Ukraine. Even amid Western sanctions over the war, the Kremlin's state-owned nuclear giant, Rosatom, has remained the world's biggest exporter of reactors and fuel.

All times CET

9 a.m. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen participates in European Parliament debate on EU-China relations
11:50 a.m. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Swiss President Alain Berset give a news conference after talks in Berlin
1 p.m. EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson joins European Parliament debate on energy storage
3 p.m. Competition chief Margrethe Vestager and Research Commissioner Mariya Gabriel deliver college readout, expected to cover digital skills
3:30 p.m. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks at arms control conference
4 p.m. Commissioners Vestager, Margaritis Schinas and Thierry Breton deliver college readout on cyber defense
4:30 p.m. Commissioners Valdis Dombrovskis and Mairead McGuinness deliver college readout on banking regulations

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