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MANCHESTER, England (CN) — Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is facing a parliamentary investigation over whether he failed to declare a 5 million-pound ($6.7 million) gift from crypto-billionaire backer Christopher Harborne shortly before being elected to Parliament in 2024.
The inquiry by Parliament’s standards commissioner comes as Farage seeks to turn Reform’s local election gains into national momentum following sweeping victories in English council elections last Thursday.
The right-wing party also came second in Welsh parliamentary elections, behind the center-left Plaid Cymru, and tied for second with Labour in Scottish elections, where the center-left Scottish National Party picked up the most seats.
The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, the independent watchdog overseeing lawmakers’ conduct in the House of Commons, is investigating whether Farage breached disclosure rules by failing to register the payment after winning a seat in the coastal town of Clacton in July 2024.
Farage has said he had “no obligation” to declare the money because Harborne gave it to him before he became a member of Parliament.
Farage, who had been a member of the European Parliament, secured election to the Commons on his eighth attempt after years of failed parliamentary bids.
Reform said Farage had followed the rules.
“Mr Farage’s office is in communications with the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards,” a party spokesperson said. “He has always been clear that this was a personal, unconditional gift and no rules were broken. We look forward to this being put to bed once and for all.”
What the rules say
Under Commons rules, newly elected members must register financial interests and benefits received within one year of election if they could reasonably be seen to influence parliamentary work.
The guidance says purely personal gifts may not require disclosure. But it also warns lawmakers to consider both the donor’s motive and how the money is used, adding that “if there is any doubt, the benefit should be registered.”
The Conservative Party, which formally raised concerns with Parliament’s watchdog, has also referred the matter to Britain’s Electoral Commission, the agency overseeing campaign finance.
It is currently evaluating the evidence.
Labour Party Chair Anna Turley said scrutiny was warranted.
“Nigel Farage has been avoiding legitimate questions since news of his billionaire backer’s ‘gift,’” Turley said. “It’s right that he faces a proper investigation.”
Farage said Harborne gave him the money in early 2024 to cover personal security costs and described it as “purely private” and “wasn’t political in any sense at all.”
It’s not the first time Farage has faced questions over his finances.
In January, Parliament’s standards commissioner found he failed to register about $515,000 in interests on time, though the breach was deemed inadvertent and resolved without punishment.
The stakes for Farage are higher now.
With Reform making gains in local elections, the party has more than 1,000 additional local lawmakers and a stronger national profile.
It is a breakthrough Farage called a “truly historic shift in British politics.”
Who is Christopher Harborne?
Harborne is a British-Thai billionaire who lives in Thailand and one of the biggest financial forces in British politics.
A technology investor best known for his cryptocurrency holdings, Harborne built much of his fortune through early investments in the cryptocurrency platform Tether, one of the world’s most traded cryptocurrencies.
He is also Reform’s largest donor.
Harborne first backed Reform in 2019 and has since donated more than $29.5 million to the party, including $16.1 million in 2025 alone.
Last year, he gave Reform a single $12 million contribution, the largest individual donation to a British political party by a living person.
He has also donated approximately $2 million to the Conservative Party.
Separately, Harborne is pursuing a defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal in Delaware.
Harborne accuses the newspaper’s publisher, Dow Jones & Company, of falsely linking them to bank fraud, money laundering and terrorism financing in relation to Tether.
A trial is scheduled for late 2027.
Green leader faces separate questions
Farage is not the only opposition leader facing scrutiny.
Leader of the left-wing Green Party, Zack Polanski, said he may have failed to pay the correct amount of council tax while living on a houseboat moored in east London, prompting calls for an investigation by Labour politicians.
The questions come as the Greens also made gains in local elections, picking up nearly 600 council seats in England as the party sought to build on growing support alongside Reform’s surge.
Council tax is a local property levy broadly comparable to municipal taxes in the U.S.
Under the law, if the houseboat was his main residence, then Polanski should have paid council tax there.
Waltham Forest Council, the local authority where the houseboat is moored, said it was reviewing the case and seeking legal advice because of the “complex factors unique to moorings.”
A Green Party spokesperson said Polanski had taken steps to repay any money owed and described the issue as an “unintentional mistake.”
“Zack apologizes sincerely for the unintentional mistake,” the spokesperson said.
Labour accused Polanski of misleading the public after he previously insisted his tax affairs were in order.
Courthouse News reporter James Francis Whitehead is based in England.
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