Fishing is Senegal’s backbone – but local nets come back empty. In our new podcast, journalist Hans Wetzels explains how European firms plunder the seas under Senegalese flags while profits flow back to Europe. 🔗 Listen to the full episode: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

Health supplements are booming. Pills and powders promise to make us fitter, stronger, and younger – and the industry is worth billions. But a Follow the Money investigation uncovered that nearly half of these products carry claims that aren’t allowed under EU rules. Discover the full story here 👇

EU defence spending is rising and Hungary plans to sell stakes in nine defence firms to 4iG, a telecoms group chaired by an Orbán ally. The deal shifts public assets to politically connected owners, with possible EU financing. MEP Freund warns it may breach EU state-aid rules. 🔗 Full article below.

From fishy ‘sustainability’ (an investigation with @desmog.com) to dangerous ‘forever chemicals’ in Europe – our latest Bureau Brussels newsletter stories dives into murky aquaculture supply chains, Tata Steel’s €685m ETS bill, and a new EU deal on pesticides. 🔗👇 Read the latest edition today.

This week in Europe Uncovered: Migrants repeatedly dumped at borders; Swiss weapons exported to Russia; and deaths linked to Europe-backed microloans in Cambodia 🔗 Read it on our website or app by clicking below.

🔗 One of the world’s biggest copper producers with EU headquarters struck a controversial deal in Congo. Its own lawyers warned: the money may have gone to a billionaire under sanctions. “There are concerns over the risk of bribery”. Read the full story below on our website or app.

This week, I had the pleasure of being interviewed by @ftm.eu on malign foreign influencing strategies and EU’s response to it. You can find the full interview by @alistairkeepe.bsky.social (and featuring some very nice office pictures by @albacita.bsky.social) here www.ftm.eu/articles/int...

Gold-standard on paper. Devastating in practice. Europe’s microfinance sector is far less ethical than it looks. Banks in the Netherlands, France, Belgium and Norway profit while Cambodians struggle – and sometimes lose their lives – under crushing debt. *Content warning: article discusses suicide.

This week in Crime & Corruption newsletter: Polish ex-oil boss turned MEP Daniel Obajtek faces the loss of his EU immunity; Trump is accused of turning the U.S. into the world’s largest tax haven; and a whistleblower says EY forced him out after exposing client fraud. 🔗Read it on our website or app.

Ep.11 of the @ftm.eu podcast: European companies are plundering Senegal's seas. Local fishermen’s nets are coming back empty. The culprit? European fishing companies. With livelihoods disappearing, many young West-Africans see no option but to migrate to Europe. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

In Senegal, fishing is the backbone of the economy. But local fishermen’s nets are coming back empty. The culprit? European fishing companies are plundering Senegal’s seas. With livelihoods disappearing, many young West-Africans see no other option but to migrate to Europe in search of a future.

Italian Prime Minister Meloni vowed to solve Italy’s migration challenges by building offshore migrant centres in Albania to process asylum seekers. In our latest podcast episode, journalist James Imam takes us inside the costly fiasco behind this promise. Watch it here: youtu.be/Tdid1t_bBnE

The EU is “uniquely vulnerable” to foreign interference, warns democracy researcher Luise Quaritsch. From fake news sites to secret lobbying, foreign actors are working to erode trust in Europe’s democracies. Full interview available via our website and app.

📬 More hard-hitting reads from Bureau Brussels this week: a confidential EIB audit exposes conflicts of interest while former staff make claims of favouritism, a far-right adviser’s Kremlin trips, EU “Aid for Trade” shortcomings, and smelly deals in The Hague testing Brussels’ manure limits.

In Congo’s Virunga rainforest, millions in EU development funds were spent over a decade to reduce poverty and bring electricity to thousands of households. In the absence of buyers, Belgian Prince Emmanuel de Merode called in a French cypto cowboy, a hydroplant now powers his bitcoin mine.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni vowed to solve Italy’s migration challenges by building offshore migrant centres in Albania to process asylum seekers. Three years on, the hubs are half-empty, construction costs have ballooned into millions and courts keep stalling progress.

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Commission struck a multi-billion-euro deal with Pfizer for vaccine doses. In preparations to the deal, Ursula von der Leyen texted with the company’s CEO. But when our journalist requested access to those messages, the Commission refused.

🚨🇪🇺 EU cash💰 and taxpayer money in countries such as 🇮🇹Italy and 🇪🇸Spain are flowing to commercial #spyware firms, yet this public funding is not well-known or analysed. 🧵My investigation for @ftm.eu. 👇👇👇 www.ftm.eu/articles/spy...

Pay your taxes, get spied on? EU citizens may be footing the bill for their own surveillance. Millions of euros, to be more precise. Public funding has ended up in the pockets of commercial spyware firms, whose tools have been used against journalists, lawmakers, and ordinary citizens.

This week in Bureau Brussels, we investigate who’s really profiting from the new €150-billion defence fund, the EU’s anti-corruption office opposes criticism that it had too easily dismissed Huawei-corruption allegations, and we give you the highlights of von der Leyen’s State of the Union speech.

In 2021, von der Leyen texted Pfizer’s CEO ahead of a multi-billion € vaccine deal. When @alexfanta.bsky.social asked to see the texts, the Commission refused. In episode #9 of the @ftm.eu podcast, we unpack #Pfizergate with @lise-witteman.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

Starting next year, the ECB will take climate risks into account when handing out loans – not just financial risks. Polluting companies will therefore pay more interest. But for a giant like Shell, this will make little difference: the extra costs are negligible compared to its profits.

When journalist Alexander Fanta requested access to text messages between Ursula von der Leyen and the CEO of Pfizer, the European Commission refused – and they have still never seen the light of day. In this episode, we unpack Pfizergate: the scandal that has dogged von der Leyen’s presidency.

Authoritarian regimes across the world are lining up to adopt China's censorship technology – better known as the Great Firewall. With it, they can track protesters in real time and shut down critical websites. A recent data leak reveals that European companies are involved. #GreatFirewallExport

This week in Bureau Brussels, Nick de Jager shows us how Georgia's most popular television channel is spreading “the ugliest propaganda” and Simon Van Dorpe updates us on the money laundering investigation into former EU justice commissioner Didier Reynders and his ties to a Russian oligarch.

Daniel Křetínský is a Czech billionaire businessman who built his fortune on coal – all the while receiving hundreds of millions of euros for green subsidies from the EU. In our latest podcast episode, journalists Hazel Sheffield and Sofia Cherici unpick his vast empire: www.ftm.nl/s/50a39

🔥 Laura Kövesi, the first European Chief Prosecutor, has locked horns with EU institutions and powerful political figures. Insiders question if her successor, whose appointment process is in full swing, will continue to crack the whip. ✅ Free to read today on @ftm.eu ⤵️ www.ftm.eu/articles/eu-...

EU Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruța Kövesi has shone a spotlight not only on misconduct in member states, but also on influential figures in Brussels – including none other than Ursula von der Leyen. So with her mandate coming to an end, some fear that her replacement may be a safer political choice.

You probably have never heard of him, but he’s one of Europe’s most influential billionaires: Daniel Křetínský, a Czech businessman who built his fortune on coal – all the while receiving hundreds of millions of euros for green subsidies. In this episode, our journalists unpick his vast empire.

This week in Bureau Brussels, FTM-journalist Peter Teffer fills us in on how civil servants dominate the scientific committee studying the post-pandemic recovery fund, the German Reinmann family sells coffee giant for a big check, and Green fund’s CEO pockets more than $1 million.

I tried getting access to Ursula von der Leyen’s text messages for years. Now it is clear why that will never happen. She auto-deletes them all. New story: www.ftm.eu/articles/von...

One and a half years ago, Follow the Money requested access to text messages between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and French president Macron. Finally, the response is in. Von der Leyen has set her Signal messages to auto-delete “to prevent possible major data leaks”.

2025 is a record-breaking year for claims filed by fossil fuel and mining firms against democratic policies – marking a grim milestone in a surge of polluting industries seeking compensation for lost profits via a secretive tribunal. For @ftm.eu with contributions by ao @anilyilmaz.bsky.social

Fossil fuel and mining companies have launched a record number of lawsuits against governments, demanding billions for lost profits due to green policies. This year alone, they’ve filed a record number of 22 claims. Critics warn this pressures governments to dilute climate action.

Europe’s most powerful political party has picked an unexpected enemy: NGOs. After it claimed Brussels was secretly bankrolling green lobbyists, journalists Lise Witteman and Hans Wetzels found a very different story. Watch the full episode here: www.ftm.nl/s/f37b9

@ftm.eu's crime and corruption newsletter is back after a revitalising summer break 🔥 Today: ✅ Belgium’s top prosecutor on corruption probes ✅ A tour of Europe of this summer's corruption news ✅ ING under criminal scrutiny in Didier Reynders probe Read it here ⤵️ www.ftm.eu/newsletters/...

After an eventful summer break, Simon Van Dorpe and Salsabil Fayed are back with their newsletter Crime & Corruption. This week, they show you what you’ve missed during the summer in corruption news, dive into how the EU is cracking down on money laundering and interview Belgium’s top prosecutor.

🎙️ Episode #7 of the @ftm.eu podcast: After the @eppgroup.bsky.social claimed Brussels was secretly funding green lobbyists, @lise-witteman.bsky.social & Hans Wetzels uncovered a very different story. The EPP is scapegoating NGOs as it backpedals on the Green Deal. 🔗 www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

Europe’s most powerful political party has picked an unexpected enemy: NGOs. After it claimed Brussels was secretly bankrolling green lobbyists, journalists Lise Witteman and Hans Wetzels of Follow the Money found a very different story. Discover the full investigation in our latest podcast episode.

Journalist and wine connoisseur Barnaby Eales took a deep dive into how fraudsters sold millions of litres of Spanish bulk wine, passing them off as more prestigious French labels. But what does this have to do with climate change? Watch the episode and discover the full story: www.ftm.nl/s/16958

Bureau Brussels is back after a busy summer break! This week: Spanish far right fined for illegal donations, new special adviser on defense has little experience with defense and one of the world’s biggest equity firms, KKR, has deeper ties to Israel than previously thought.

When French distributors faced a crop shortage, they used cheap Spanish bulk wine and falsely labeled it as Vin de France. Watch our latest podcast episode to find out how this "solution” quickly became one of the biggest wine frauds in recent years: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

The former president of the European Commission still holds office at his old headquarters, where he regularly receives prominent guests. According to the Kazakh government, he also offered help as go-between. Jean-Claude Juncker himself denies this, claiming that he is “immune” to influence.

Your “French” wine might not be French at all. 🍷 In episode #6 of the @ftm.eu podcast, journalist & wine connoisseur Barnaby Eales dives into how fraudsters passed off millions of litres of Spanish bulk wine as premium French bottles. www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

The bottle of wine on your dinner table might not be what it claims. Our journalists took a deep dive into how fraudsters sold litres of Spanish bulk wine, passing them off as more prestigious French labels. With climate change disrupting harvests, this kind of fraud may only become more common.

Forever chemicals are everywhere, even in our drinking water. And they're not going anywhere. In this episode of FTM The Podcast, hosts Emma du Chatinier and Alexander Fanta discuss the risks of these chemicals with physicist Thomas Goorden. Watch the full episode here: lnkd.in/dyXYyACc

Are EU health laws purely based on scientific evidence? In the case of ‘forever chemicals’ in our drinking water, industry lobbying appears to have influenced the EU to weaken vital regulation of a toxic substance called TFA. Learn more in our latest podcast episode: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

800 billion euro – that’s how much the EU wants to invest in defense. But a slice of it should go toward combating Russian disinformation, Ruth Kronenburg, director of Free Press Unlimited tells FTM. “Access to information can literally save lives.” www.ftm.eu/articles/eu-...

It’s in our food, wine & water – but few in the EU talk about it. Rising levels of TFA, a “forever chemical” tied to serious health risks, are alarming scientists. In our latest podcast, we uncover how industry lobbying helped weaken Brussels’ response.

Nestlé and Unilever are cashing in on pricey supplements that promise to fight stress, obesity and other health issues. But many of those claims break EU advertising rules, our investigation reveals.