UK parliament to probe Nigel Farage’s $6.8 million donation from crypto billionaire
If found guilty of violating the Parliamentary code of conduct, the Reform UK party leader could be suspended from the House of Commons.
By Olivier Acuna|Edited by Sheldon Reback May 13, 2026, 4:34 p.m. 2 min readMake preferred on
What to know:
- Nigel Farage is facing a formal investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog over his failure to declare a 5 million-pound gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, U.K. news services reported.
- Farage and his Reform UK party argue the donation, said to cover his security costs, was a purely personal gift exempt from disclosure rules, a claim disputed by Labour and other parties.
Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK and a member of Parliament, is facing a formal investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog after failing to declare a 5 million-pound ($6.8 million) gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, news services including the Guardian reported Wednesday.
Farage received the donation from Harborne, a Thailand-based businessman with a 12% stake in stablecoin issuer Tether, weeks before announcing he would stand as a candidate in the 2024 general election, and did not declare it when elected as MP for Clapton. New MPs must register all financial interests received within the 12 months preceding their election.
A weekly YouGov poll of voting intentions has Reform UK gaining the largest share of votes, at 28%, putting Farage as the frontrunner to become the next prime minister. If the watchdog finds he breached the code of conduct, he could face suspension and potentially be forced to fight again for his parliamentary seat.
Farage, who is supportive of the crypto industry, has said that because Harborne’s donations were intended to cover his security expenses he was not compelled by law to declare them. Reform UK recently said the gift falls under the exemption for purely personal gifts. Labour and other parties argue that Harborne’s donations are subject to the rule, and the gift was referred to the parliamentary commissioner last month.
The parliamentary commissioner for standards, Daniel Greenberg, is set to investigate Farage under rule 5 of the code of conduct, which compels lawmakers to “fulfil conscientiously” requirements relating to their registration of interests, the Guardian said.
The Reform UK leader does not appear on the commission's list of current investigations.
In April, BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo said in an op-ed for CoinDesk that he had given the party 4 million pounds since the start of the year.
The U.K. government imposed a moratorium on political crypto donations in March, citing a review warning that digital assets could be used to channel foreign money into U.K. politics. The ban covers donations of any size and will be written into the Representation of the People Bill, with criminal penalties for non-compliance.
Read more: Nigel Farage takes 6% stake in UK bitcoin treasury firm Stack BTC
CryptocurrencyRegulationUKMore For You
Clarity Act amendments would remake key parts of crypto bill but have doubtful future
By Jesse Hamilton|Edited by Nikhilesh De1 hour ago
The U.S. crypto market structure bill is being targeted with dozens of amendments aiming to change or add to the text as its Senate hearing approaches.
What to know:
- The crypto market structure bill's hearing in the Senate Banking Committee this week will consider a long list of amendments, virtually all of which won't have a chance of incorporation into the Clarity Act that's expected to advance with the committee's approval.
- The proposals — many of them from Democrats...
The Protocol: Solana’s ‘Alpenglow’ upgrade is live for testing
11 minutes ago
Metaplanet delays preferred share listing amid challenging Japanese market structure
16 minutes ago
Bitcoin buyers with long-term 'conviction' surges 300% with most recent buyers sitting on profits
1 hour ago
Crypto Long & Short: Bitcoin vs. gold: 26% relative undervaluation
1 hour ago
Telecom giant KDDI to acquire 14.9% stake in Coincheck Group in $65 million deal
1 hour ago
Clarity Act amendments would remake key parts of crypto bill but have doubtful future
1 hour agoTop Stories
Live markets: Bitcoin dips below $80,000 as producer price inflation surges to 6%
3 hours ago
Crypto wallet provider Ledger puts U.S. IPO plans on hold due to market conditions
2 hours ago
The $82,000 battle: bitcoin tests key resistance zone to form next major breakout
6 hours ago
Charles Schwab begins U.S. rollout of spot crypto trading for retail customers
6 hours ago
Nevada regulators push back after prediction market conference blames them for move
12 hours ago
