US to issue visa bans for foreign nationals who 'censor' Americans: Rubio
Rubio said in a statement that a new visa restriction policy would apply to foreign nationals responsible for censorship of protected expression in the United States and said it was unacceptable for foreign officials to issue or threaten arrest warrants for social media posts made on US soil.
"It is similarly unacceptable for foreign officials to demand that American tech platforms adopt global content moderation policies or engage in censorship activity that reaches beyond their authority and into the United States," Rubio said.
Rubio's statement did not name specific countries or individuals that would be targeted, but noted that some foreign officials have taken "flagrant censorship actions against U.S. tech companies and U.S. citizens and residents when they have no authority to do so."
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Ripple applies for US banking license, joining crypto rush for legitimacy
Crypto firm Ripple Labs is applying for a banking license in the US, following a similar move by stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group as crypto firms look to be regulated to deepen ties with traditional finance. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse confirmed on X on Wednesday that the company is applying for a license with the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), following an earlier report by The Wall Street Journal. 'True to our long-standing compliance roots, Ripple is applying for a national bank charter from the OCC,' he wrote. Garlinghouse said if the license is approved, it would be a 'new (and unique!) benchmark for trust in the stablecoin market' as the firm would be under federal and state oversight — with the New York Department of Financial Services already regulating its Ripple USD (RLUSD) stablecoin. Ripple follows Circle on wanting bank charter Ripple's decision to get a banking license came just two days after Circle, which issues the second-largest stablecoin USDC, applied to the OCC to create a national trust bank that would oversee its stablecoin reserves. The move by both firms comes as the US Senate passed a stablecoin regulating bill called the GENIUS Act, which lays out standards for offering the US dollar-pegged tokens, including that the OCC will oversee larger stablecoin issuers. Circle co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire said the company was taking 'proactive steps' to 'align with emerging US regulation for the issuance and operation of dollar-denominated payment stablecoins.' Anchorage Digital is the only crypto firm that holds a national bank charter. Ripple bids for Fed master account Ripple's Garlinghouse added that the company also applied for a Master Account with the Federal Reserve, which would give it access to the US central banking system. 'This access would allow us to hold $RLUSD reserves directly with the Fed and provide an additional layer of security to future proof trust in RLUSD,' Garlinghouse said. 'Congress is working towards clear rules and regulations, and banks (in a far cry from the years of Operation Chokepoint 2.0) are leaning in,' he added, mentioning the conspiracy that the Biden administration sought to cut off crypto from the financial system. Ripple applied for the account through Standard Custody, a crypto custody firm it acquired in February 2024. XRP gains over 3% on Ripple's bank charter application XRP, the token of the XRP Ledger blockchain that Ripple Labs uses for its products, has risen 3.2% over the past day to trade at $2.24, according to CoinGecko. The token began to climb late on Wednesday before hitting a 24-hour peak of $2.27 around the time of Garlinghouse's post before slightly cooling from its rally. Source:
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International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board Completes the First Review under the Extended Credit Facility Arrangement for the Democratic Republic of the Congo
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The signing on June 27, 2025, of a peace agreement between the governments of the DRC and Rwanda, under the mediation of the United States, is encouraging for the prospect of a peaceful resolution on the ongoing conflict and renewed focus on addressing development goals. Despite the challenging environment, economic activity remained resilient, with robust GDP growth of 6.5 percent in 2024, driven by continued dynamism in the extractive sector. External stability has strengthened, as the current account deficit narrowed and the accumulation of international reserves continued. Inflationary pressures continue to ease, and year-on-year inflation declined from 23.8 percent at end-2023 to 11.7 percent at end-2024 and [8.5] percent at end-June 2025. Performance under the program was mixed, as the intensification of the conflict has placed significant strains on the budget. 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The escalation of the conflict in the eastern part of the country has caused serious human, social and economic damage and induced the government to increase spending. Despite these difficulties, the macroeconomic environment of the DRC remained broadly stable. Growth has remained robust, due to the resilience of mining production. Inflation continues to decrease, and the external position has strengthened. The economic outlook remains positive, but is fraught with downside risks related to the persistence of the conflict, declining external humanitarian assistance, global economic headwinds, and potential escalation of geopolitical conflicts. The authorities are committed to closely monitor these risks and to respond proactively to evolving challenges. 'Budget implementation remains challenging in a difficult security context. As a result, the domestic fiscal deficit is projected to be larger than initially projected for 2025, but is expected to return to the path envisaged at program approval starting in 2026, reflecting the authorities' commitment to carry out measures to enhance domestic revenue mobilization and strengthen the budget implementation process. Additionally, to guard against unforeseen adverse shocks, the authorities have adopted a contingency plan. 'The Central Bank of the Congo (BCC) has maintained a tight monetary policy stance, thereby helping bring inflation down to single digits for the first time in three years. The accumulation of international reserves has continued, on the back of the narrowing of the current account deficit. Efforts must continue, to strengthen the monetary policy implementation framework, refine the foreign exchange intervention strategy, enhance the governance and safeguards of the BCC and ensure its adequate recapitalization. 'The authorities have committed to accompany these efforts to preserve macroeconomic stability with an acceleration of structural reforms in key areas, including strengthening the AML/CFT framework, improving the business climate, enhancing transparency and governance, combating corruption and upgrading national statistics. Efforts to lay the groundwork for a timely implementation of the reform measures underpinning the RSF arrangement approved in January should be stepped up.' Table 1. Democratic Republic of the Congo: Selected Economic and Financial Indicators, 2023-26 2023 2024 2025 2026 Est. CR No. 25/023 Prel. CR No. 25/023 Proj. CR No. 25/023 Proj. GDP and prices Real GDP 8.5 6.0 6.5 5.4 5.3 5.1 5.3 Extractive GDP 19.7 11.6 12.2 7.7 8.2 5.2 5.8 Non-extractive GDP 3.5 3.2 3.5 4.2 3.6 5.0 5.0 GDP deflator 14.4 17.4 19.9 8.8 8.2 7.4 6.7 Consumer prices, period average 19.9 17.7 17.7 8.9 8.8 7.3 7.1 Consumer prices, end of period 23.8 12.0 11.7 7.8 7.8 7.0 7.0 (Annual change in percent of beginning-of-period broad money) Money and credit Net foreign assets 19.9 17.4 23.0 18.2 14.5 23.7 22.7 Net domestic assets 20.3 4.9 5.6 -3.5 -1.0 -10.9 -10.5 Domestic credit 34.3 15.4 15.2 9.9 10.5 3.7 4.2 Broad money 40.3 22.4 28.1 14.7 13.8 12.8 12.3 (Percent of GDP, unless otherwise indicated) Central government finance Revenue and grants 14.8 15.6 15.2 15.0 14.8 14.9 14.9 Expenditures 16.5 16.8 16.5 16.8 17.0 16.6 16.6 Domestic fiscal balance -1.2 -0.3 -0.8 -0.8 -1.2 -0.8 -0.8 Investment and saving Gross national saving 9.5 9.1 9.6 12.2 11.2 13.0 12.5 Investment 15.7 14.2 13.5 15.0 14.4 15.3 14.8 Non-government 12.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 Balance of payments Exports of goods and services 44.0 45.1 47.4 45.4 46.1 45.5 46.6 Imports of goods and services 49.9 48.9 50.3 47.3 47.5 46.9 47.0 Current account balance, incl. transfer -6.2 -5.1 -3.9 -2.8 -3.2 -2.4 -2.4 Current account balance, excl. transfers -7.5 -5.1 -5.0 -2.7 -3.4 -2.3 -2.6 Gross official reserves (weeks of imports) 8.2 10.0 10.1 11.5 11.8 12.7 12.8 External debt Debt service in percent of government revenue 7.6 5.7 6.1 6.7 7.1 7.0 7.4 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Zawya
an hour ago
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Zimbabwe: Arbitrary detention of journalist an assault on freedom of expression
Responding to the arrest and detention of Faith Zaba, editor of the weekly Zimbabwe Independent, on allegations of undermining the authority of or insulting the country's President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Khanyo Farisè, Amnesty International's Senior Researcher in East and Southern Africa, said: 'Amnesty International strongly condemns the arrest and detention of Faith Zaba for exercising her constitutionally guaranteed rights as a journalist. This is an assault on the right to freedom of expression and press freedom. 'Zimbabwean authorities must immediately release Faith Zaba and drop all charges against her as she is detained simply for doing her job. Journalism is not a crime. Authorities must allow journalists to carry out their work freely, safely and without fear of harassment, intimidation or reprisals. 'The arrest of journalists such as Zaba, and her colleague Blessed Mhlanga who was arbitrarily detained earlier this year simply for doing their job, are part of an ongoing pattern in which the criminal justice system is being misused to target independent media voices to instill fear and curb press freedom. 'These tactics pose a significant threat to a free media in Zimbabwe and the public's right to information. Authorities must end the growing restriction on civic space in the country and allow everyone to freely exercise their human rights." Background Faith Zaba was arrested on 1 July and detained in Harare on allegations of undermining the authority of or insulting the President. According to her lawyer, Chris Mhike, the charge relates to a satirical article published in the weekly's Muckraker column last Friday. Her bail application has been postponed to 3 July, pending a review of her medical record due to her ill health. Zaba's arrest comes after the recent arrest and lengthy detention of another journalist from the same outlet, Alpha Media House's head of news at HSTV, Blessed Mhlanga, who spent 72 days in pretrial detention. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Amnesty International.
