Thailand-based crypto donor gives another $4 million to Reform UK
The British political party Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, has received another £3 million (about $4 million) donation from crypto investor Christopher Harborne, who lives in Thailand. This marks the businessman’s second major contribution to the party in 2025.
Earlier in August, Harborne donated around $12 million, which became the largest single political donation by a living donor in the history of UK political parties, according to the Financial Times. Thanks to these contributions, Reform UK has become the leading party in terms of political fundraising in the UK. According to the FT, the party raised about $23 million in 2025, compared with roughly $17 million for the Conservative Party and about $10 million for the ruling Labour Party.
A major crypto donor in British politics
Christopher Harborne is a British aviation entrepreneur and one of the early investors in cryptocurrencies. He is also known as Chakrit Sakunkrit and has long been based in Thailand. The investor owns roughly a 13% stake in Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, which he received as compensation linked to the 2016 Bitfinex exchange hack.Harborne has previously funded other right-leaning political forces in the United Kingdom. He donated to the Conservative Party during Boris Johnson’s premiership and invested around $13 million in Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party during the 2019–2020 political cycle.
Crypto donations become a political factor
Reform UK became the first political party in the United Kingdom to officially accept cryptocurrency donations, including Bitcoin. The party has also pledged that if it wins the next general election — expected before August 2029 — it will introduce a Cryptoassets and Digital Finance Bill aimed at supporting the development of the crypto industry in the country.At the same time, the UK government is considering restrictions on cryptocurrency donations in politics. A new Elections Bill could include measures such as a full ban on crypto donations, stricter transparency rules for party funding, and tighter controls on the sources of political contributions.
Concerns over foreign influence
Growing concerns about potential foreign influence in politics are pushing the United Kingdom to review the use of cryptocurrency in political financing. The UK government says it is exploring the possibility of completely banning crypto donations to political parties. While no official proposal has yet been confirmed, officials say discussions are underway in Whitehall due to concerns about transparency and the risks of foreign interference in British politics.Earlier, we reported that a record £9 million crypto donation helped push Reform UK to the top of the political fundraising rankings.
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