Second crypto billionaire donates $49 million to Reform UK

A second British billionaire has made a record donation of nearly $49 million to Reform UK, matching a gift from another wealthy backer made just one day earlier.

Christopher Harborne, a 63-year-old Thailand-based cryptocurrency investor, disclosed the 36 million pound donation, roughly $48.7 million, in a piece written for the Daily Telegraph on Saturday. He described the gift as a philanthropic contribution to the country and said he was inspired to match the sum given by fellow billionaire Ben Delo, the 42-year-old co-founder of the BitMEX cryptocurrency exchange, a day before.

The two donations bring the total pledged to Reform since Friday to $97 million, one of the largest short-term infusions of private money into a British political party in recent memory.

A party under police scrutiny

The donations arrive as Reform faces mounting questions over its finances. London's Metropolitan Police confirmed earlier this week that it has opened a criminal investigation into whether the party accepted illegal foreign donations, adding fresh scrutiny to a funding structure that has already drawn repeated regulatory attention.

Reform leader Nigel Farage praised the two donors in a post on social media platform X, saying that Delo and Harborne wanted nothing in return beyond a government that fixes the country. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch responded by accusing Farage's party of prioritizing money over judgment, arguing that a larger bank balance does not buy political integrity.

Political landscape shifting under new Labour leadership

Reform has emerged over the past two years as one of the most significant forces in British politics, drawing support from voters disillusioned with both major parties amid a prolonged squeeze on living standards. The party is the successor to Farage's Brexit Party, rebranded in 2021.

Recent polling suggests Reform has lost some ground since Andy Burnham replaced Keir Starmer as Labour leader and prime minister earlier this year. Al Jazeera's London correspondent Camille Nedelec reported that both Delo and Harborne have framed their donations as an attempt to level the playing field in British politics, arguing that Reform lacks the institutional financial infrastructure that has traditionally supported the Conservative and Labour parties.

Neither Delo nor Harborne is a newcomer to Reform's fundraising efforts. Harborne has been one of the party's most significant financial backers since Farage's rise to national prominence, while Delo has separately provided the party with substantial six-figure and seven-figure sums over the past year through direct disclosures with the Electoral Commission.

The scale of Saturday's combined donations, and their timing alongside a live police investigation, is likely to keep Reform's financial arrangements under sustained public and regulatory examination in the weeks ahead.