Lenders have reported the biggest jump in credit card defaults in nearly two years, in a sign that families are struggling to weather financial pressures, The Telegraph reported. Banks experienced the largest increase in people falling behind on their credit card debts in the three final months of last year since the start of 2024, new figures show. The data from the Bank of England also showed that demand for mortgages registered the sharpest fall in two years.

Germany's troubled economy returned to modest growth last year after two years of falling output, official figures showed, as hopes rise that government spending on bridges, rail lines and defence may help end years of stagnation, EuroNews reported. The expansion in gross domestic product of 0.2% for 2025 was fueled by stronger consumer and government spending while exports sagged under the weight of more restrictive US trade policy under President Donald Trump, the German Federal Statistical Office said on Thursday. That follows shrinkage of 0.5% in 2024 and 0.9% in 2023.

A Scottish council is suing a major City investment group over claims a £40m “gamble” on a fleet of onshore wind farms backfired, The Telegraph reported. Aberdeen City Council has filed a London High Court claim against Federated Hermes, a fund manager once tied to the BT pension scheme, over allegations the group engaged in an “existential gamble” by investing its pension money in the green energy project.

Bank of England Deputy Governor for Markets and Banking Dave Ramsden said on Wednesday that the United Kingdom must adapt its financial safeguards to account for evolving risks, including the rise of stablecoins, BreakingtheNews.net reported.

France's competition watchdog has raided auditing firms as part of an anti-trust investigation, it said on Wednesday, while La Lettre financial publication said the "Big Four" firms Deloitte, KPMG, EY and PWC were among those targeted, Reuters reported. Autorite de la Concurrence, as the watchdog is known, on Tuesday carried out "unannounced inspections to visit and seize documents" at several companies offering services of auditing and financial reporting certification, it said in a statement. Deloitte said it had no comment to make, when contacted by Reuters about the matter.

The European Parliament is considering putting on hold the European Union's implementation of the trade deal struck with the United States in protest over threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to seize Greenland, Reuters reported. The European Parliament has been debating legislative proposals to remove many of the EU's import duties on U.S. goods - the bulk of the trade deal with the U.S. - and to continue zero duties for U.S. lobsters, initially agreed with Trump in 2020. It was due to set its position in votes on January 26-27, which the MEPs said should now be postponed.

Italian administrators overseeing Europe’s largest steelworks have sued its former owner ArcelorMittal, seeking €7bn in damages, as the plant struggles for survival, the Luxembourg Times reported. According to a complaint filed with a Milan court this month and seen by the Financial Times, Acciaierie d’Italia is seeking compensation for what it alleges was ArcelorMittal’s “mismanagement” of the steelworks, formerly known as Ilva.

Moldova’s central bank governor said the country is preparing for a big international lender to enter its banking system following reforms to the sector, which was rocked by a scandal that left the nation on the verge of bankruptcy a decade ago, Bloomberg News reported. “I’m sure that we’ll see some big international names in Moldova sooner rather than later,” said Anca Dragu, governor of the National Bank of Moldova. “In terms of financial stability, we are doing fine and the banking sector looks pretty strong.

Germany’s DZ Bank revealed it received regulatory approval from BaFin under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework, enabling it to offer meinKrypto, a digital asset trading platform targeted at retail clients through the cooperative banking system, CoinDesk.com reported. The announcement follows a broader trend in Germany, where traditional financial institutions are entering the crypto space under the MiCA regime. DekaBank, another cooperative group player, debuted crypto trading and custodial services for institutions in early 2025.