U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has announced that the U.S. is investing more than $100 million in the Caribbean region to crack down on weapons trafficking, help alleviate Haiti’s humanitarian crisis and support climate change initiatives

Consumer cryptocurrency trading should be regulated as gambling, the treasury committee has urged. In a new report, the committee called for consumer trading in unbacked crypto assets to be treated in regulation as gambling. The cross-party committee of MPs said cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are being used by criminals in scams and money laundering. Unbacked crypto assets – often called cryptocurrencies – are not supported by underlying assets, the committee added. They pose significant risks to consumers, given their price volatility and the risk of losses, according to the MPs, who said retail trading in unbacked crypto more closely resembles gambling than a financial service and should be regulated as such. The report said: “We strongly recommend that the government regulates retail trading and investment activity in unbacked crypto assets as gambling rather than as a financial service, consistent with its stated principle of ‘same risk, same regulatory outcome’.” The committee pointed to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) figures indicating that around 10 per cent of UK adults hold or have held crypto assets. The MPs also said potential productive innovation in financial services should not be unduly constrained. They said technologies underlying crypto assets may bring some benefits to financial services, particularly for cross-border transactions and payments in less developed countries. A balanced approach should be taken to supporting the development of crypto asset technologies, while avoiding spending public resources on projects without a clear, beneficial use, the MPs said. Harriett Baldwin, chair of the treasury committee, said: “The events of 2022 have highlighted the risks posed to consumers by the crypto asset industry, large parts of which remain a wild west. “Effective regulation is clearly needed to protect consumers from harm, as well as to support productive innovation in the UK’s financial services industry. “However, with no intrinsic value, huge price volatility and no discernible social good, consumer trading of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin more closely resembles gambling than a financial service, and should be regulated as such. “By betting on these unbacked ‘tokens’, consumers should be aware that all their money could be lost.” The committee is considering central bank digital currencies as a separate piece of work. A treasury spokesperson said: “Risks posed by crypto are typical of those that exist in traditional financial services and it’s financial services regulation – rather than gambling regulation – that has the track record in mitigating them. “Crypto offers opportunities but we are taking an agile approach to robustly regulating the market, addressing the most pressing risks first in a way that promotes innovation.” Read More Crypto rules get final approval to make Europe a global leader on regulation Is my money safe? What you need to know about bank failures Nearly 80% of APP scam cases start online, says UK Finance Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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There's a chair on TikTok that has gone viral, and left viewers pretty confused... In the videos, the uniquely-shaped chair can be seen as women in suits climb onto the structure and sit in a strange position that doesn't look the comfiest. The chair was created by artist Anna Uddenberg as part of art installation by Meredith Rosen Gallery in New York where it was on display from March to April 2023. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The Swedish, Berlin-based artist who often explores "the merging of the body and self with technology" was for this piece inspired by "anesthetic armature of our increasingly automated environment and distorts it into sexualized pseudo-functional sculptures," according to a press release. “Similar to a BDSM contractual agreement, the body is wilfully supported, entrapped, pampered and ultimately rendered useless, all while on view for public consumption." @breakfastbyanna "Continental Breakfast" installation by Anna Uddenberg (2023) #fypシ #fyp #art #viral When it comes to the name of the installation - "Continental Breakfast" - it "speaks specifically to the body as an asset to modify, control in order to relinquish autonomy to user-friendly technologies," The strange seat takes aesthetic influence from airline seats, hospital architecture and hotel design, since "the sculptures express a hyper-functionality inaccessible to human use." This kind of sculptural and performative practice is what Uddenberg is known for. One clip from TikTok has over 48.9m views which shows several images of the chair as well as women in suits maneuvering themselves into the seat too. One person wrote: "Is it just me or dose anyone knows what it's used for." "To this point I have never understood this video," another person said. Someone else added: "Please what’s really going on here." Well, we're glad a breakdown of Uddenberg's vision has cleared this confusion up. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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