Nigel Farage Faces Compliance Investigation for Failing to Disclose $6.7 Million Grant from Tether Shareholder

According to CoinDesk, Nigel Farage, leader of the UK’s Reform UK party, is facing a parliamentary standards inquiry after receiving an undisclosed £5 million (approximately $6.7 million) grant from cryptocurrency billionaire Christopher Harborne—prior to his election as a Member of Parliament in 2024. Harborne resides in Thailand and holds a 12% stake in stablecoin issuer Tether. Farage stated that the grant was intended to ensure his personal security—not for political activities. However, both the Conservative and Labour parties have accused him of violating House of Commons rules requiring MPs to register any income received within the 12 months preceding their election, and have referred the matter to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. Reform UK countered that the payment constitutes a “personal unconditional gift,” exempt from disclosure requirements and unrelated to the election. The UK government announced in March this year that it would suspend political parties’ acceptance of cryptocurrency donations to guard against foreign interference. Previously, Christopher Harborne donated £9 million to Reform UK—the largest single political donation ever made by a living individual in the UK. This year, Ben Delo, co-founder of BitMEX, also donated £4 million to the party. Additionally, Farage himself holds a 6.31% stake in Stack BTC, a Bitcoin treasury company.