Category: 3. Business

Gates Cambridge is seeking a Community Platform Officer to strengthen connections across our global community.

The Gates Cambridge mission is to build a global network of future leaders committed to improving the lives of others. We achieve this mission by selecting outstanding scholars from countries outside the UK and providing them with full-cost scholarships to pursue postgraduate degrees in any subject available at the University of Cambridge.

Gates Cambridge Scholars become part of a lifelong global community defined by its core value of commitment to improving the lives of others through leadership. Alongside the 250 or so Scholars who are studying in Cambridge at any point in time, there are over 2000 Scholars in the alumni section of the community, and this number grows every year.

The Gates Cambridge Trust, which was established in 2000 with a generous gift from the Gates Foundation, manages the Gates Cambridge Scholarship and a programme of events and activities for Scholars. The endowment has grown to almost £350 million (2024).

At the Trust, we are a small, friendly and diverse group of colleagues who are dedicated to delivering the Gates Cambridge mission while creating a welcoming and enjoyable working environment.

Purpose of the role

To strengthen connections across the global community of Gates Cambridge Scholars, the Gates Cambridge Trust is developing a digital community platform that enables Scholars to engage with one another and stay connected to Trust. The Trust seeks someone who enjoys working with technology and people; someone curious, adaptable, and excited about helping build a thriving global online community.

The Community Platform Officer will play a central role in supporting the daily operation, development, and engagement of this platform. The postholder will work closely with the Global Engagement Manager, Communications Officer, and the platform vendor to ensure the platform remains relevant and continues to facilitate connections across the global Gates Cambridge Scholar community.

The postholder will provide day-to-day support for the digital community platform, help deliver digital engagement activities that connect Scholars, ensure that content is accurate and engaging and that user queries are resolved promptly, and data remains accurate and up-to-date.

This position offers an excellent opportunity to gain hands-on experience in digital engagement, communications, and community management within a small, diverse and supportive team.

Main Responsibilities

Platform management and support

• Approve new member registrations and maintain accurate user data.
• Monitor and help moderate online discussions, groups, and events to ensure a positive user experience and adherence to community guidelines.
• Upload and update resources, announcements, and other materials on the platform.
• Troubleshoot user and technical issues, liaising with the supplier and the Global Engagement Manager where required.
• Test and review new platform features and updates, providing timely feedback and suggestions for improvement.
• Produce regular analytics and engagement reports for internal review.

Content and communications

• Support the preparation and scheduling of digital content, including posts, and newsletters for the platform.
• Assist with the creation of campaigns that highlight community initiatives and opportunities.
• Ensure that communications are accessible, accurate, and consistent with the organisation’s tone and branding.
• Collaborate with colleagues to align platform content with broader engagement and communications strategies.

Community engagement

• Help to establish and maintain groups, mentoring schemes, and regional or thematic initiatives within the platform.
• Respond to user enquiries and provide timely, helpful guidance.
• Encourage participation and explore creative approaches to building online engagement.

Continuous improvement

• Identify opportunities to enhance user experience, streamline processes, and increase engagement.
• Stay informed about trends and best practice in digital community building and alumni relations.
• Contribute to wider team projects and initiatives as required.

The Trust actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

To apply for this role, you must submit a cover letter, CV, and names of two references. The deadline for applications is 9:00 a.m. on Monday 5  January 2026.

For full details about the role, including how to apply, please see the candidate pack.

Summary

The paper discusses Bulgaria’s public investment needs and its efficiency and assesses prospects for accelerating economic growth and income convergence through scaling up quality public investment. Utilizing substantial EU grants to fund public investment offers Bulgaria a unique opportunity to finance important infrastructure projects without relying on debt. However, slow absorption of these grant funds and inefficiencies in public investment management remain significant challenges. The analysis highlights the critical role of efficient public investment in boosting productivity and fostering sustainable growth. Using the DIGNAR model calibrated to Bulgaria’s economy, simulations suggest that full EU funds absorption and improved public investment efficiency could boost GDP by 2.3 percent in 2030. The findings underscore the importance of steadfast reforms to accelerate EU fund absorption and improve efficiency, including through enhanced investment planning and procurement processes, to boost growth.

Subject: Econometric analysis, Expenditure, General equilibrium models, Income, Infrastructure, National accounts, Public investment spending

Keywords: Bulgaria, DIGNAR model, dynamic general equilibrium modelling, economic growth, EU funds, General equilibrium models, Income, Infrastructure, public investment, Public investment spending

Global law firm White & Case LLP has advised a bank syndicate on Euronext’s €600 million bond issue and a cash tender offer for its existing €600 million bonds due 2026.

The transaction enables Euronext to proactively manage the overall maturity profile of its debt in an efficient manner.

Euronext is the leading European capital market infrastructure that provides markets for issuers, investors, trading members and market participants throughout Europe and beyond. It is a listed public limited liability company and its shares are admitted to trading on European regulated markets.

The White & Case team in Paris which advised on the transaction was led by partners Tatiana Uskova and Olga Fedosova. 

Press contact
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Tesla has launched the lower-priced version of its Model 3 sedan in Europe in a push to revive sales after a backlash against Elon Musk’s work with Donald Trump and weakening demand for electric vehicles.

Musk, the electric car maker’s chief executive, has argued that the cheaper option, launched in the US in October, will reinvigorate demand by appealing to a wider range of buyers.

The new Model 3 Standard is listed at €37,970 in Germany, €330,056 Norwegian kroner and €449,990 Swedish kronor. The move follows the launch of a lower-priced Model Y SUV, Tesla’s bestselling model, in Europe and the US.

Tesla sales have slumped across Europe as the company faces increasingly tough competition from its Chinese rival BYD, which outsold the US electric vehicle maker across the region for the first time in spring.

Sales across the EU have also been hurt by a buyer backlash against Musk’s support for Trump’s election campaign and period working in the president’s administration.

In his role running theDepartment of Government Efficiency, or Doge, the tech billionaire led sweeping job cuts, but quit in May and after falling out with Trump over the “big, beautiful” tax and spending bill.

He has also alienated customers through other controversial political interventions, including appearing to give a Nazi salute at Trump’s victory rally, showing support for Germany’s far-right AfD party, and accusing Keir Starmer and other senior politicians of covering up the scandal about grooming gangs.

New taxes on electric cars in last month’s budget could undermine UK demand, critics have said. UK electric car sales grew at their slowest rate in two years in November, at just 3.6%, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

“[This] should be seen as a wake-up call that a sustained increase in demand for EVs cannot be taken for granted,” said Mike Hawes, the chief executive of the SMMT. “We should be taking every opportunity to encourage drivers to make the switch, not punishing them for doing so.”

The chancellor’s new pay-per-mile road tax on EVs will charge drivers 3p for every mile from April 2028, costing motorists about £250 a year on average.

(Bloomberg) — The S&P 500 is set to continue its advance toward a new all-time high as the prospect of interest-rate cuts and confidence in the economy fuel investors’ appetite for risk.

Futures on the US benchmark rose on Friday after the index closed within 0.5% of a fresh record. The gauge is set for its first back-to-back weekly gain since October, signaling that traders are shaking off November’s jitters over valuations and the lack of visibility on the economy during the data blackout.

Nasdaq 100 contracts climbed 0.4%, while European and Asian gauges also added to the week’s gains. A measure of volatility dropped to the lowest since October. The dollar slipped, while Treasuries steadied. Bitcoin nudged lower toward $91,000.

With a rate cut next week largely priced in and bets pointing to further easing into 2026, investors are gearing up for a year-end rally in what is typically a supportive month for stocks. Growing confidence that the US economy remains resilient, despite softer employment, is also prompting rotations into stocks that tend to benefit from domestic strength.

“Santa will bring presents for everybody, toys for the kids and gains for investors,” said Stephan Kemper, chief investment strategist at BNP Paribas Wealth Management. “Apart from the regular seasonality there are plenty of other reasons supporting the market: rate cuts and ongoing M&A activity are some of them.”

Later on Friday, markets will a get a dated reading on the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge. The figures will include the personal consumption expenditures price index and a core measure that excludes food and energy.

Economist project a third-straight 0.2% increase in the core index for September. That would keep the year-over-year figure hovering a little below 3%, a sign that inflationary pressures are stable, yet sticky.

While the data is unlikely to derail a December rate cut, it “may change the tone from Chairman Powell,” said Wolf von Rotberg, equity strategist at Bank J Safra Sarasin. “If he emphasizes inflation risks in his press conference, markets may reprice the rate trajectory for 2026, thereby increasing the pressure on the long end of the curve and on equity market valuations.”

The September income and spending report — also delayed because of a government shutdown — is due to be released as well.

In a sign that institutional appetite for the world’s largest cryptocurrency remains subdued, BlackRock Inc.’s iShares Bitcoin Trust recorded its longest streak of weekly withdrawals since debuting in January 2024.

Investors pulled more than $2.7 billion from the exchange-traded fund over the five weeks to Nov. 28, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. With an additional $113 million of redemptions on Thursday, the ETF is now on pace for a sixth straight week of net outflows.

In commodities, copper rose to a record after a bullish price outlook from Citigroup Inc. and expectations of a shortage caused by stockpiling in the US. Gold headed for the biggest gain in a week. Brent crude fluctuated near $63 a barrel.

Corporate News

Health-care group Cooper Cos’ shares jumped in premarket trading after a guidance beat and the launch of a strategic review. Moore Threads Technology Co., a leading Chinese artificial intelligence chipmaker, soared as much as 502% in its Shanghai debut after raising 8 billion yuan ($1.13 billion) in an IPO. Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. has entered exclusive negotiations to sell its film and TV studios and HBO Max streaming service to Netflix Inc., according to people familiar with the discussions. Nvidia Corp. would be barred from shipping advanced artificial intelligence chips to China under bipartisan legislation unveiled Thursday in a bid to codify existing US restrictions on exports of advanced semiconductors to the Chinese market. Swiss Re AG announced its first share buyback in five years while disclosing a $250 million charge. Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.3% as of 10:43 a.m. London time S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4% Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were little changed The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.8% Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1649 The Japanese yen was little changed at 155.09 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.0674 per dollar The British pound was little changed at $1.3338 Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin fell 0.8% to $91,427.4 Ether rose 0.7% to $3,144.68 Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.11% Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.78% Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.44% Commodities

Brent crude fell 0.1% to $63.17 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.4% to $4,224.07 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

–With assistance from Neil Campling and Sidhartha Shukla.

©2025 Bloomberg L.P.

The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) received a prestigious award from the Association for the Defence of Trademarks (ANDEMA), Spain’s leading industrial property body, in recognition of its outstanding commitment to combating counterfeiting and defending intellectual and industrial property rights across Europe.  

The award was presented during a ceremony held on 27 November in Barcelona, as part of the European Industrial Property Forum. OLAF accepted the honour, underscoring its enduring role in safeguarding a fair, safe and competitive European market.  

“ANDEMA’s recognition is a tribute to the work carried out by OLAF across borders to uphold legality and protect fundamental rights in the internal market. It also reinforces the importance of sustained cooperation with our partners. Our joint expertise and commitment make it possible to fight against increasingly sophisticated counterfeit networks,” said Ernesto Bianchi, Director of Investigations and International Operations at OLAF. 

OLAF’s work in protecting intellectual property and tackling counterfeits is essential for building trust among EU citizens, businesses and institutions. Counterfeits undermine legitimate economic activity and erode confidence in the internal market. Even more worrisome, counterfeits pose serious risks to consumer health and safety, as well as to the environment, because they often bypass quality controls, use hazardous materials and generate untraceable waste. By coordinating effective, cross-border actions with partners such as EUIPO, customs authorities and international stakeholders, OLAF helps ensure that European industry and consumers are shielded from the damaging effects of counterfeits.

In recent years, OLAF has stepped up joint efforts with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in strategic initiatives tackling some of the most pressing threats such as online counterfeiting and e-commerce fraud, counterfeiting of construction materials as well as everyday products. 

Background

Counterfeits pose a wide range of risks. Beyond economic harm, counterfeits can threaten consumer health and safety, distort competition, and damage technological innovation and job creation. OLAF’s interventions help preserve consumer trust in markets and foster a level playing field for businesses of all sizes. 

Through its investigations, partnerships and anti-fraud strategy, OLAF continues to support a European marketplace that rewards creativity, safeguards legality and protects consumer confidence.