# Ben Delo Type: Person Source: Crypto Intelligence Brief — https://getcryptobrief.com/entity/ben-delo Canonical HTML page: https://getcryptobrief.com/entity/ben-delo ## Timeline - **2026-09-14**: Lords second reading of Representation of the People Bill — The bill, including a £100,000 first-year limit on donations from returning overseas voters, has its second reading. - **2026-09-12**: Harborne matches with second £36M — Christopher Harborne announces in The Telegraph that he matched Delo's £36 million, citing his 'competitive spirit'; Reform receives two huge crypto donations in two days. - **2026-09-12**: Delo makes record £36 million donation — Ben Delo, BitMEX co-founder, gives £36 million ($A68 million) to Reform UK, the largest single donation to a British political party on record. - **2026-09-11**: Harborne matches with £36m — Christopher Harborne matches Delo's record donation hours later, announcing it in The Daily Telegraph and keeping his position as Reform's largest donor. - **2026-09-11**: Delo gives record £36M donation — Crypto billionaire Ben Delo gives £36 million to Reform UK, reported as a record donation intended as a lump sum ahead of a possible donation cap. - **2026-09-10**: Ben Delo gives £36m record donation — BitMEX co-founder and Trump-pardoned crypto billionaire Ben Delo donates £36m, eclipsing the £10m Conservative legacy as the largest political donation on record. - **2026-09**: Police open funding probe; MPs back donation caps — The Metropolitan Police announce an investigation into foreign-funding allegations following a Channel 4 News report, and MPs back measures including a cap on overseas donations. - **2025-08**: Harborne gives £9m to Reform UK — The single donation was the largest to a UK political party by a living person at the time. - **2025-08**: Harborne donates £9M to Reform UK — Christopher Harborne gives £9 million to Reform UK, becoming the party's largest donor. - **2025-08**: Harborne gives £9 million to Reform UK — Billionaire Christopher Harborne donated £9 million ($A17 million) to Reform UK, becoming the party's largest donor at the time. - **2025**: Delo pardoned by Trump — US President Donald Trump pardons Ben Delo after his conviction for violating the US Bank Secrecy Act. - **2024-07-04**: Farage elected MP; £5m Harborne gift comes under scrutiny — Harborne's £5m cash gift to Farage, made ahead of the July 2024 general election, becomes the subject of a Parliamentary Standards Commissioner investigation over non-declaration. ## Recent coverage (6 stories) ### BitMEX Co-Founder's £36M Reform Donation Tests Crypto Influence 2026-09-13 06:19:45 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 5/10 · Sources: 2 BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo has given £36 million to Reform UK, the largest UK political donation on record, just as MPs advance a ban on crypto donations and a £100,000 cap on overseas gifts. The donation highlights how crypto wealth is being converted into political influence and the regulatory backlash that may follow. Full story: https://getcryptobrief.com/story/bitmex-cofounder-36m-reform-uk-donation ### Crypto Billionaires Pour £72M Into Reform UK in 48 Hours 2026-09-13 00:59:13 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 6/10 · Sources: 2 In just 48 hours, two crypto billionaires have injected £72 million into Nigel Farage's Reform UK. Christopher Harborne matched Ben Delo's £36 million donation, citing a 'competitive spirit,' and remained the party's largest donor. The donations spotlight crypto capital's growing role in UK politics and the regulatory stakes for digital assets. Full story: https://getcryptobrief.com/story/reform-uk-crypto-billionaires-72m-political-donation ### Two Crypto Billionaires Hand Reform UK £72m in 24 Hours 2026-09-13 00:55:58 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 5/10 · Sources: 2 Reform UK has pulled in £72m in roughly 24 hours from two crypto billionaires — BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo and Thailand-based investor Christopher Harborne — the largest political donations in British history. The windfall lands as the Metropolitan Police probe foreign-funding allegations and Labour pushes a cap on overseas donor cash. For crypto, it marks the sector's biggest single leap into UK political influence. Full story: https://getcryptobrief.com/story/reform-uk-crypto-billionaires-72m-donations ### Crypto Donors Inject £72m into Reform UK's Pro-Bitcoin Agenda 2026-09-13 00:54:21 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 6/10 · Sources: 2 Crypto billionaires Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo have handed Reform UK £72m in 24 hours, the largest political donation in British history. The gift supercharges a party already promising crypto tax cuts, a Bitcoin reserve, and cryptocurrency donation acceptance, giving the UK crypto sector an unprecedented political war chest. Full story: https://getcryptobrief.com/story/crypto-donors-72m-reform-uk-bitcoin-policy ### Crypto Billionaires' $97M UK Donations Fuel Political Backlash 2026-09-12 19:20:54 · Sentiment: Bearish · Impact: 6/10 · Sources: 2 Ben Delo, BitMEX co-founder, and crypto investor Christopher Harborne gave £72 million to Reform UK, sparking accusations that crypto money is buying political influence. The controversy could harden regulatory attitudes toward digital assets just as the industry seeks mainstream legitimacy in Britain. Full story: https://getcryptobrief.com/story/crypto-billionaires-97m-reform-uk-crypto-politics-backlash ### Crypto Billionaires Drop £72M on Reform UK in 2 Days 2026-09-12 15:15:29 · Sentiment: Neutral · Impact: 5/10 · Sources: 3 Two crypto billionaires have now pledged £72 million to Reform UK within 48 hours, with Christopher Harborne matching Ben Delo's £36m donation. The money signals unprecedented crypto wealth entering British politics and raises questions about future UK crypto policy. For the Web3 community, it marks a new era of political engagement by industry elites. Full story: https://getcryptobrief.com/story/crypto-billionaires-72m-reform-uk --- This page is a machine-readable summary. Sentiment measures the directional read of each development for this entity, not the tone of the reporting; impact weights consequence, not syndication reach. See https://getcryptobrief.com/guides/methodology for the full editorial methodology.