CoinDesk
Crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne donated £36 million ($48.7M) to Nigel Farage's Reform UK on Saturday, matching BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo's identical contribution a day earlier and bringing the combined haul to £72 million ($97.4M) in just 24 hours. The two gifts jointly rank as the largest individual donations ever made to a UK political party, according to The Guardian. The windfall dramatically escalates crypto industry backing of Reform at a moment when the UK government is moving to ban crypto political contributions altogether.
Why it matters
Harborne, an investor in stablecoin issuer Tether and crypto exchange Bitfinex, said he expects nothing in return for the gift: "no peerage, no policy change, just a party that is ready for government." Farage has actively courted the industry, pledging at the Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas in May 2025 to establish a bitcoin reserve at the Bank of England, introduce a 10% capital gains tax on cryptoassets and prevent banks from closing customers' accounts over crypto activity. Harborne's latest gift alone is four times the £12M donation he disclosed in December 2025, which was then reported as the largest single contribution to a British political party by a living donor.
Market impact
The funding lands against a fraught backdrop. The Metropolitan Police are investigating allegations concerning Reform's political donations, and Farage separately faces a parliamentary standards probe over a £5M personal gift from Harborne before his election as an MP in 2024. Both Reform and Farage deny wrongdoing. The government separately announced plans in March to ban political donations made in cryptocurrency and cap contributions from overseas electors at £100,000 annually. The Electoral Commission told lawmakers in March that no UK political party has reported donations identified as cryptoassets. Together with Harborne and Delo's earlier Q1 2026 contributions of roughly £3M and £4M, the two men now account for about 76% of Reform's £9.26M in reported donations outside public funds.
Frequently asked questions
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Who are the two crypto billionaires behind Reform UK's record donations?
Christopher Harborne, an investor in stablecoin issuer Tether and crypto exchange Bitfinex, and Ben Delo, co-founder of BitMEX. Each gave £36M to Reform UK within 24 hours.
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How much of Reform UK's funding now comes from crypto donors?
Harborne and Delo's combined £72M, alongside earlier Q1 2026 contributions of roughly £3M and £4M, account for about 76% of Reform UK's £9.26M in reported donations outside public funds.
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Is this the largest political donation in UK history?
Yes. The £36M gifts from each donor jointly rank as the largest individual donations ever made to a UK political party, according to The Guardian.
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What is the UK government doing about crypto political donations?
The government announced plans in March to ban political donations made in cryptocurrency and cap contributions from overseas electors at £100,000 annually.
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What crypto policies has Nigel Farage proposed?
At the Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas in May 2025, Farage pledged to establish a bitcoin reserve at the Bank of England, introduce a 10% capital gains tax on cryptoassets and prevent banks from closing customer accounts over crypto activity.
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