Nigel Farage crypto funding claims have opened a new disclosure row for the Reform UK leader. A Sunday Times investigation said George Cottrell gave him major support before his 2024 election. Farage publicly denied breaking parliamentary rules after the report.
The report said Cottrell funded security, drivers, social media staff, and accommodation. It was provided before Farage became MP for Clacton. The election took place on July 4, 2024.
The Nigel Farage crypto funding questions arise from his failure to declare them. The Commons regulations pertain to any benefits above £300. This applies only to such benefits that are related to political activities.
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Farage Faces Questions Over Undeclared Cottrell Support
Personal gifts are excluded from the rules. Farage declared benefits of £9,253 for his visit to Belgium provided by Cottrell. Another benefit he declared was £15,276 for a flight.
The Sunday Times reported no other instances of Cottrell’s assistance in Farage’s register. According to Cottrell, he hired employees for Farage’s personal office who received their payments via a bank transfer.
Nigel Farage’s crypto funding questions are growing because of Cottrell’s past and his reported links to offshore crypto betting. He was arrested in Chicago’s O’Hare airport in 2016 while on tour with Farage. He spent eight months in jail for committing wire fraud.
His case was connected with a money laundering operation. Cottrell later moved to Montenegro, according to the report. The Sunday Times called him the key man behind Tether.bet.
Tether.bet is an offshore betting site accepting substantial bets both in cash and cryptocurrencies. The latter includes USDT, the stablecoin issued by Tether. Cottrell denied personally seeking customers for the platform.
Harborne’s Tether Stake Adds Weight to Funding Claims
According to the newspaper, Tether.bet website was registered after a Mayfair lunch in July 2020. During the event, Farage, Cottrell, and Christopher Harborne allegedly met. Harborne is a Thailand-based billionaire associated with Tether.
Harborne owns a 12% share in USDT issuer Tether, says the report. He donated over £12 million to Reform UK. This information increased pressure on the Nigel Farage crypto funding allegations.
The Sunday Times has reported allegations of UK deposits to Tether.bet. They went through two British shell companies until 2022. One of them was allegedly owned by Reform UK’s data protection officer.
Another investigation against Farage was conducted by Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Daniel Greenberg. It involves the donation by Harborne worth around £5 million in 2024. Nigel Farage did not declare the gift.
The Farage spokesperson said the Harborne funds helped him cover his security needs. The report mentioned Cottrell had settled his security expenses prior to the funding. This information raised concerns over Nigel Farage’s crypto funding disclosures.
Nigel Farage Crypto Funding Scrutiny Expands to CBDC Policy
The Farage spokesperson described the report as “baseless and contrived.” According to the spokesperson, no rules were broken because the support came before Farage was an active politician.
Phil Brickell, a Labour MP and the chairman of an anti-corruption committee in parliament, reported the commissioner about Farage. Farage allegedly took credit for convincing the Bank to change its tune regarding CBDC development.
Brickell argued that Harborne could gain from resisting a government-backed digital currency because it might challenge privately issued stablecoins.
Farage and Reform have championed crypto. Last year, the party published a draft bill aimed at turning the UK into “the world’s premier hub for cryptocurrency.” Reform is also the first UK political party to accept donations in Bitcoin. Reform’s broader crypto agenda has also come under scrutiny due to the Nigel Farage crypto funding row.
Farage previously suggested cutting capital gains tax rates from 24% to 10% for crypto holders and called for creating a Bitcoin reserve at the Bank of England.
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