U.K.’s Farage faces standards probe over $6.7 million gift from Tether billionaire Christopher Harborne
The Conservative and Labour parties argued Nigel Farage broke Commons rules by not declaring the £5 million, but Reform UK said it was an exempt, personal, unconditional gift.
What to know:
- Nigel Farage is under scrutiny for an undisclosed £5 million ($6.7 million) gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne before his 2024 election, which Farage claims paid for security.
- The Conservative and Labour parties argued Farage broke Commons rules by not declaring the £5M, but Reform UK said it was an exempt, personal, unconditional gift.
- The controversy comes as the UK government imposed a moratorium on crypto donations to political parties, citing the risk of foreign influence.
Farage confirmed the gift in an interview with the Daily Telegraph, saying it was meant to keep him “safe and secure for the rest of my life” after a milkshake was thrown at him in 2019 and a firebomb attack on his home last year.
Harborne, a Thailand-based businessman with a 12% stake in stablecoin issuer Tether, made the payment in 2024. Farage announced his Clacton candidacy in early June last year and won the seat in July.
A Reform UK spokesman called the payment a “personal unconditional gift” given before Farage was elected and said his decision to stand as an MP was “entirely unrelated.”
The spokesman, the report added, said “We are confident everything has been declared in accordance with the rules.”
The Commons code of conduct requires new MPs to register benefits received in the 12 months before their election, and says any benefit should be registered if there is doubt. Reform says the gift falls under the exemption for purely personal gifts.
