Bankers Filed Suspicious Activity Report Over Farage's £5M Gift From Tether Billionaire
Banks flagged Nigel Farage’s £5 million gift from billionaire Tether investor Christopher Harborne to the UK’s National Crime Agency in a suspicious activity report on 16 May 2024, because they could not fully trace the source of the funds. A SAR is only a warning signal, not evidence of wrongdoing. Harborne, a major Tether shareholder, had already given millions to Reform UK, and crypto-linked money transfers increased the perceived risk. Farage said he did not know about the SAR and had no reason to doubt the money’s source. The NCA would not confirm any report, citing confidentiality rules. The reported timing of payments may conflict with Farage’s claim that he received the gift on 5 April 2024, since some funds may have arrived after he briefly said he would not stand in the general election. Parliament’s standards commissioner is already investigating whether the gift should have been declared.
