Nigel Farage's British Reform UK received a $49 million donation from a crypto-billionaire

The British right-wing populist party Reform UK received a donation of 36 million pounds sterling (about $49 million) from British crypto-billionaire Ben Delo, co-founder of the crypto exchange BitMEX, who lives in Hong Kong, writes the BBC.

Delo explained his decision in a column for the Telegraph by saying that he wanted to ensure "a level playing field" for Nigel Farage's party, given the financial capabilities of its two main political rivals — the Labour and Conservative parties.

This sum became the largest single donation ever received by a political party in the United Kingdom. The previous record sum — 9 million pounds (approximately $12.2 million) — was also received by Reform UK and also from a crypto-billionaire, Christopher Harborne.

The record for the size of a legacy donation belongs to the Conservatives — 10 million pounds sterling (about $13.5 million).

Farage stated that for him, this donation is "a great honor and a source of pride."

"Unlike those who express imaginary concern about the state of 'our democracy' while doing everything possible to keep it a cartel, I want a fair fight and a level playing field," Delo writes. "From the party's recent problems, I concluded that it should spend less time fundraising to compete on equal terms [in elections] and more time preparing to work in government."

Delo previously stated that he would donate one million pounds sterling per month to Farage's party until mid-2029 — the latest date by which the ruling Labour Party could call a general election. However, he has now decided to transfer the entire promised sum at once — in case the government tries to restrict large donations in the future.

Currently, there are no limits in the UK on donations that citizens living in the country can transfer to political parties.

However, the Labour Party recently announced a limit of 100,000 pounds sterling (about $135,000) on donations from Britons living outside the country. To be able to donate a larger sum, it will be necessary to have lived in the UK for at least one year.

The second reading of this bill is scheduled for September 14 in the House of Lords. Delo, who was born in Sheffield, UK, and now lives in Hong Kong, has already stated that he plans to return to the UK to retain the ability to fund Farage's party in the future. He previously donated 4 million pounds to it.

Another major Reform UK sponsor, Christopher Harborne, who lived in Thailand, also appears to be moving to the UK and has already registered as a voter there, the Times reported in June. In April 2026, Harborne stated that the government's plans to tighten control over the funding of political parties would not prevent him from continuing to make donations to Nigel Farage's party.

Reform UK's fundraising has repeatedly raised questions from law enforcement agencies. Last week, British police announced the start of an investigation into suspected violations of foreign funding law by several party leaders after Channel 4 News broadcast a hidden-camera report. The conversation concerned a willingness to violate the ban on transfers from foreigners.

Farage himself participated in the conversation and stated that he was misunderstood. Reform UK denies any wrongdoing and stated that they would cooperate with the investigation.

An investigation by the parliamentary standards commission is currently underway regarding Farage himself. It is investigating whether he should have declared a cash gift of 5 million pounds sterling he received from Harborne in 2024.

At that time, Farage was not an MP and did not intend to run, but shortly after receiving the gift from the crypto-billionaire, he changed his mind and ran in the election, which he won.

Farage claims he was not required to declare this "purely private" gift, as it had nothing to do with his parliamentary or political activities. In his opinion, the parliamentary investigation is a manifestation of political struggle.

Amid the scandal over this gift, Farage resigned as an MP and ran for re-election in his constituency. However, all British parties decided to boycott them and not put forward candidates against Farage.

His only competitor in the constituency ultimately became British comedian Jonathan David Harvey, who ran in the election under the pseudonym "Count Binface."