Trump-Pardoned Crypto Founder Gives Farage £36 Million

British crypto entrepreneur Ben Delo is giving Nigel Farage's Reform UK £36 million — about $48.7 million — in the largest donation ever made to a British political party.

Ben Delo, co-founder of the cryptocurrency trading platform BitMEX, announced Friday he is handing Reform UK £36 million, a record gift to a British party and a major boost to Farage's push to break the Conservative-Labour grip on power.

Delo said he is committing £1 million a month until the expected 2029 general election, but front-loaded the whole sum into a single payment so Labour could not use its control of Parliament to "cut that financial lifeline to their competitor."

Delo was convicted in the United States in 2022 over failings in BitMEX's anti-money-laundering program, and was later pardoned by President Trump.

The money lands while Reform is under criminal investigation. The Metropolitan Police has opened a probe into allegations the party breached donation rules on illegal foreign funding.

The Numbers

Reform has taken in roughly £38 million in total since launching in 2021 — meaning one donor has nearly matched the party's entire lifetime fundraising. Over that same stretch, the Conservatives received £150 million and Labour £128 million, according to The Independent.

Delo had already given Reform £8 million across four donations this year. Until now he was the party's second-largest donor, behind crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, who has given £15 million in the past year.