Crypto billionaire Ben Delo plans UK return to bankroll Reform UK, denounces overseas donation cap as 'tinpot'

British cryptocurrency billionaire Ben Delo plans to leave Hong Kong and return to the UK to resume donating millions to Reform UK, according to reports, after the government moved to cap overseas political donations at £100,000. Delo, 42, previously gave £4 million to Nigel Farage’s party and has criticised the cap as a “tinpot” attempt to hobble Reform’s finances.

Delo reportedly believes the legislation was drafted with him and fellow Reform backer Christopher Harborne in mind. Harborne has channelled £12 million to the party from Thailand and would be subject to the same restrictions. By relocating, Delo has said he intends to remove those limits and give Reform the financial firepower to mount a serious challenge at the next general election.

“For Labour, sitting on its cushion of trade union funding, the idea that someone might create a level playing field by giving Reform as much money to spend as the other parties is intolerable,” he is said to have written. He has also expressed hope that other wealthy Britons living abroad will follow suit and return to the UK to counter what he views as an unfair advantage for the government.

Delo grew up in Sheffield and studied at Oxford. Diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome in childhood, he has spoken about how the condition shapes his worldview, according to reports. He pleaded guilty in the United States in 2022 in a case relating to compliance failures at BitMEX, and later received a presidential pardon from Donald Trump, reports say.

Separately, his foundation has reportedly directed £100 million to charitable causes over the past eight years, including a £25 million gift in February to the Sheila Coates Foundation, which supports young people with autism. He has told reporters that his condition leaves him particularly intolerant of political doublespeak.

He cited the 2020 prosecution of Declan Armstrong, a Welsh teenager with autism convicted of a hate speech offence, as evidence that mainstream political language has become difficult for neurodiverse people to navigate. Delo has praised Farage’s directness and criticised ministers who, he argues, highlight headline GDP growth while ignoring per capita figures and “paper over the cracks with immigration,” according to the report.

The timing is significant for Reform, which draws more from individual donors than any other British party, according to the report. Harborne’s departure from the eligible donor pool has opened a gap in its funding base; Delo’s planned return is intended to plug that hole ahead of the next general election.