Billionaire Ben Delo (Sheffield, 42 years old), who has accumulated a huge fortune with the cryptocurrency business, has donated 36 million pounds sterling (about 42 million euros) to Reform UK, the party of far-right Nigel Farage. It is the largest sum given to date by a single person to a British political party.
Such a gift is an injection of encouragement for Farage, recently harassed by various corruption scandals, who has stated that he feels “honored and deeply grateful” for the donation. Delo has justified the step he has taken in an opinion forum published in the conservative newspaper The Daily Telegraph in which he points out that he wants there to be a “fair and balanced electoral competition” in the United Kingdom.
Delo, who made his fortune in Hong Kong before returning to British soil, was convicted in 2022 in the United States for failing to implement the controls required by law in his companies to prevent money laundering. However, the billionaire was pardoned by President Donald Trump and currently has no pending charges with justice.
The delivery of money is not immediate. Delo has committed to giving one million pounds a month to the party until the next general election, which should take place in 2029, exactly 36 months from now. However, he has made it clear that he will advance the entire promised amount at once if the current Labor Government makes the decision to put a limit on the personal donations that political parties can receive.
This is an idea called for by many deputies on the left and the center, which was once cherished by the former prime minister, Keir Starmer. However, neither he nor his successor, Andy Burnham, have made any progress in this regard. “The Government has already recognized that these mega-donors are a problem, and that we must do something to stop it,” said Stella Creasy, the Labor MP who most strongly calls for a limitation. “This donation, which means that Reform UK has obtained more in one day than our party spent in the last general election, shows that we must act as soon as possible to protect our democracy.”
Although British legislation limits to 100,000 pounds (about 116,500 euros) the money that can be given to training by someone who lives abroad and has not resided in the United Kingdom in the 12 months prior to the donation, Reform UK has been convinced that the movement carried out by the billionaire Delo complies with all legal parameters and will not pose any problem.
“Unlike all those who show a false concern about the health of our democracy, while continuing to do everything they can to keep it under control like a cartel, I want a fair and balanced electoral competition,” Delo wrote in the Telegraph. “My conclusion regarding the recent problems facing Reform UK is that they should spend less time raising funds to try to compete on equal terms [with the rest of the parties] and concentrate more on preparing to govern.”
Farage's “problems”
The “recent problems” referred to by the billionaire, who had previously given four million pounds to Farage's party and has never hesitated to publicly express his opinions against immigration or the woke movement, are a series of police investigations for alleged illegal donations that have put the politician and the party on the ropes and have significantly reduced his electoral expectations in the polls.
The Metropolitan Police of London has just announced the opening of an investigation into the revelations carried out by the channel Channel 4 News and the journalistic investigation group, Verbatim: hidden cameras that show two of Farage's direct advisors (already resigned) and the politician himself meeting with fake American billionaires to arrange apparently illegal donations and aid.
The police were already on the trail of several payments received by Reform UK before the last parliamentary elections in July 2024. Specifically, donations made by Fiona Cottrell, an aristocratic daughter of the third Baron of Manton and heir to a business empire derived from the manufacture of soap. She became the girlfriend of the then Prince Charles of England (now Charles III), before her naked posing in Penthouse magazine ruined the relationship.
