Reform UK, the political party led by Nigel Farage, received £72 million ($97.4 million) in donations from two cryptocurrency billionaires over two days, after BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo and Tether investor Christopher Harborne each gave the party £36 million ($48.7 million).
Delo revealed his donation in an op-ed in the Telegraph on Friday. It is the largest single donation to a British political party on record, exceeding the £10 million left to the Conservatives by Lord John Sainsbury in 2022.
Delo's article said the payment would give Reform a "level playing field" against its opponents. He had intended to give £1 million a month until the next general election, which must be held by 2029, and brought the money forward in a single payment in case the government caps donations, he said.
"I believe it is the duty of people with broad shoulders and deep pockets to step up and help Reform to win and govern, rather than allow the British people to be trapped in the political monoculture that is driving this country off a cliff," Delo wrote.
Harborne revealed that he matched Delo's donation in his own Telegraph article published Saturday morning. He wrote that Delo had told him about the planned gift and that his own competitive streak prompted him to match it.
