Farage Reported to UK Standards Watchdog on Crypto Lobbying Threats

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has been report to the House of Commons for legal oversight on the grounds that it influenced the Bank of England on the cryptocurrency policy in a way that would benefit its main donor, which is a major investor in stablecoin provider of Tether.

Phil Brickell, the Labor MP who leads the parliamentary group on anti-corruption and trust tax, has asked the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Daniel Greenberg, to look into Farage’s dealings with the central bank. Rules of Parliament wound Counsel from the authorities or ministers on behalf of the people who pay them, for 12 months after the payment.

“Before meeting with the governor of the Bank of England, Farage publicly promoted Tether, criticized restrictions and vowed to oppose the Bank’s approach,” Brickell told the newspaper. Guardianhe adds that Farage “has since taken credit for persuading the bank to soften its stance.”

Meeting with the Bank

Complaints are at a secret meeting last September, where Farage says he encouraged Governor Andrew Bailey to cancel plans for Digital currency at the Central Bankor “Britcoin,” an idea he has said he’ll go to jail for. Farage later said he had pushed the Bank to soften its approach, and last week it did he has fallen £20,000 worth of stablecoins he owned openly attacked.

Deputy Labor MP, Joe Powell, said documents to Bailey to ask for more information about the meeting, arguing that, “Decisions about the UK’s financial system, including the bank’s digital currency, should be made in the interest of the public and on the basis of a formal, independent assessment, not made behind closed doors for the benefit of commercial money.”

Brickell said the case goes beyond crypto, turning on whether an MP “who has received millions from one person” advances policies that could increase the value of the donor’s money.

The donor is Christopher Harborne, a British, Thai billionaire who owns a 12% stake. USDT Tether provider, and stays the sixth on Sunday Times Rich List.

An incredible gift

The leader of Reform UK accepted the unsaid £5 million ($6.7 million) gift from Harborne before standing in the general election in July 2024. At the time, Farage had not announced his intention to stand as a member of Parliament, and the gift had not been reported to parliamentary officials.

Pa Guardianhe also took two political donations of £25,000 from Harborne, in January 2025 and February 2026 for a trip to the US and the Chagos Islands, while Reform UK received another. £15 million from the billionaire between last August and February. Greenberg is an exception search if Farage were to announce his £5 million gift.

Farage and Harborne have both said the billionaire does not want to give anything back, while Farage’s account of the gift has changed, from an aid to his defenseto a reward for his Brexit campaign, the money he can spend as much as you like. He has called it “out of bounds” and a “privacy issue,” and Reform UK has dismissed the allegations as “rubbish.” Work too the accused Distance checked.

The Bank of England said the September meeting was part of its engagement with politicians and acknowledged that Farage and Bailey had different views on the digital pound, but did not release any details.

Farage has previously called himself a “champions” for the cryptocurrency space, calling for the UK to set up a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve and push for lower taxes on digital assets.

Decrypt has reached out to Nigel Farage and Phil Brickell for comment, and will update this article when they respond.