Crypto investor Christopher Harborne and BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo each donated £36 million to Reform UK, giving the political party £72 million—approximately $97.4 million—from the two donors within 24 hours.
The contributions are reportedly the largest individual political-party donations in British history. Harborne has investments connected to Tether and Bitfinex, while Delo co-founded cryptocurrency derivatives exchange BitMEX, according to CoinDesk’s September 12 report.
There is no verified evidence that the donations themselves were made in cryptocurrency. CoinDesk reported that Harborne’s previous £9 million contribution was paid in cash, and reporting on the new donations did not identify their payment method.
The scale of crypto-sector political financing was already growing. In the first quarter, Harborne and Delo reportedly gave approximately £3 million and £4 million respectively. Official Electoral Commission figures show Reform UK accepted £9.262 million in donations excluding public funds during that quarter.
The contributions arrive while British authorities are examining political-finance controls. The Metropolitan Police is investigating allegations involving Reform donations, while party leader Nigel Farage faces a separate parliamentary standards inquiry concerning an earlier personal gift. Reform and Farage deny wrongdoing.
The British government has separately announced legislation intended to ban cryptocurrency political donations and cap donations from overseas electors. The government’s March 25 announcement says crypto contributions would be prohibited until regulators believe safeguards can prevent untraceable funds from entering political finance.
The proposed cryptocurrency ban would not automatically restrict lawful cash donations from people whose wealth was created in crypto. It addresses the payment instrument and traceability—not the donor’s industry.
TOKEN RECON ASSESSMENT
The intelligence is the scale of political influence generated by crypto wealth, not an unverified claim that £72 million moved onchain.
Britain is attempting to separate two issues: whether cryptocurrency should be accepted directly as a political donation, and whether individuals associated with the industry may make large conventional contributions.
A crypto-payment ban addresses the first issue. It does not resolve the second.
Watch the final legislation, disclosure of the donations’ payment method, the Electoral Commission’s treatment of the contributions and the outcome of ongoing investigations.
Sources
CoinDesk. Harborne and Delo give Reform UK £72 million
U.K. Electoral Commission. First-quarter 2026 political donations
