Nigel Farage was in discussions about returning to frontline politics from as early as March 2024, months before publicly announcing his comeback, while receiving an undisclosed £5 million gift from a crypto billionaire and negotiating a deal to write off more than £1 million in party loans.
Farage, who announced his return as Reform UK leader on 3 June 2024, told senior party figures he would need 'a million a year' to cover lost earnings if he stood for parliament. He received the £5 million from Thailand-based Christopher Harborne in April 2024 but did not disclose it, despite rules requiring newly elected MPs to register relevant financial interests from the preceding 12 months. The parliamentary standards watchdog opened a formal investigation into the gift in May before Farage resigned as Clacton MP to contest a byelection.
Farage also faces scrutiny over financial support from George Cottrell, a convicted fraudster based in Montenegro who helped renegotiate his leadership terms with then-leader Richard Tice. Transactions involving Reform's leadership have been referred to the National Crime Agency.