Ben Delo, a co-founder of the BitMEX cryptocurrency exchange and a prominent UK crypto figure, has donated £36 million (about $49 million) to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, according to reports from the DPA and other UK media. The payment is described as the largest single donation ever made to a British political party.
Delo said the contribution was intended to help Reform UK ensure a “fair fight” in the run-up to the next stage of voting. The move lands amid an ongoing UK political debate about whether donations and gifts tied to the crypto industry can distort elections and how lawmakers should regulate them.
Key takeaways
- Ben Delo reportedly gave £36 million to Reform UK, the biggest political-party donation in the UK, according to DPA and other media.
- Delo frames the donation as a way to enable a “fair fight” at the polls.
- Reform UK’s earlier major crypto-linked donors included Christopher Harborne, who previously gave £9 million.
- UK politicians have been debating whether to impose a permanent ban or moratorium on crypto donations in response to the Farage donation controversy.
- Delo’s background includes prior US federal charges tied to the Bank Secrecy Act; he later received a presidential pardon, according to prior reporting.
Why the £36 million donation is drawing scrutiny
The reported £36 million donation by Ben Delo gives fresh fuel to concerns about the influence of digital-asset wealth in British elections. It also intensifies a controversy that has already prompted investigations and parliamentary fallout.
Earlier reporting from Cointelegraph said Farage was under investigation after receiving millions of dollars’ worth of donations and gifts from figures connected to the crypto sector, including Christopher Harborne and George Cottrell. Delo’s latest contribution is therefore not happening in a vacuum—it follows a sequence of political and legal developments that have put the spotlight on how the UK treats crypto-related political funding.
For investors and builders in the crypto industry, the political implications are not abstract. Election funding that draws from large, market-aligned fortunes can shape the policy environment affecting digital asset regulation, compliance expectations, and future tax or licensing rules.
Reform UK’s fundraising and the “fair fight” rationale
Delo reportedly said he donated the money to ensure a “fair fight” at the polls. Farage responded by expressing confidence in Reform UK and describing the party as the only one capable, in his view, of reversing the country’s economic decline.
The scale of the donation also contrasts with earlier fundraising milestones for Reform UK. Cointelegraph previously noted that Delo’s fellow crypto-linked donors included Harborne, who gave £9 million to the party last August, making him the second-largest donor behind Delo’s reported contribution.
According to The Telegraph, the £36 million was structured as £1 million per month up to the general election in 2029, but Delo made the full payment upfront so it could not be blocked. That detail matters because the controversy around crypto donations in the UK has increasingly focused not only on who funds political parties, but also on how such funding is timed and administered.
Investigation backdrop: resignation, by-election, and lawmakers’ response
In July, Nigel Farage resigned his position as a Member of Parliament amid the crypto donation scandal, which triggered a by-election that Reform UK won with 63% of the vote—ahead of a satirical candidate, Count Binface, as described in prior coverage.
Cointelegraph previously reported that Labour MPs were considering making a moratorium on crypto donations—announced in March and pending legislation—permanent in response to the situation Farage described as “gifts” from Harborne and Cottrell. The reported Delo donation adds new pressure to those discussions, because it demonstrates that large-scale political funding tied to crypto-linked wealth can continue even as lawmakers weigh whether existing rules are adequate.
More broadly, the case highlights a tension in UK political life: the desire to attract legitimacy and investment while also addressing concerns that opaque or poorly understood funding channels could undermine public trust in democratic processes.
Delo’s legal history and what the pardon means for the political debate
Ben Delo’s political visibility is also tied to his legal history in the United States. Cointelegraph previously reported that Delo, one of three BitMEX co-founders, pleaded guilty to federal charges related to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act. Cointelegraph also reported that Delo agreed to pay a $10 million fine in 2022 and did not serve prison time.
Importantly for context, earlier reporting also states that Delo and his colleagues Arthur Hayes and Samuel Reed received a pardon from US President Donald Trump in March 2025. While a pardon does not erase prior conduct in the public record, it can change how figures are perceived legally and politically, including their ability to participate openly in public life and major funding decisions.
For UK lawmakers trying to decide on permanent restrictions, the Delo case underscores a practical dilemma: regulating political influence often requires judgments about risk, reputation, and compliance—rather than relying only on the presence or absence of formal convictions.
What to watch next
As Reform UK faces fresh attention following the reported £36 million donation, the key question is whether UK lawmakers move beyond debate toward binding, enforceable rules on crypto-linked political funding. Readers should watch for signs of whether the proposed permanent moratorium evolves into legislation—and how parties and donors respond to any new compliance expectations.
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