UK nears crypto donation ban in politics

Philip Rycroft, a former senior civil servant tasked with probing foreign financial interference in U.K. politics, said the dangers to transparency from the emerging tech are "unacceptable" and could leave election regulators struggling to manage an "unpredictable" donation route, News.Az reports, citing Politico.

The call for a moratorium on the currency will be seen as a blow to Nigel Farage's fundraising efforts. His Reform UK party is the only mainstream U.K. political outfit to have courted donations in crypto.

Communities Secretary Steve Reed is expected to confirm the government will adopt the recommended crypto pause in a Commons statement later Wednesday.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer ordered the review into the U.K.'s election integrity after Nathan Gill, the former leader of Farage's Reform UK party in Wales, was sentenced to more than 10 years in jail for taking bribes to spread pro-Kremlin propaganda.

Rycroft also recommends political donations from U.K. voters based abroad be capped at between £100,000 and £300,000 a year.

While most donations from U.K. voters based abroad do not pose problems, it is harder for British election regulators and law enforcement bodies to trace the source of cash originating from overseas.

If adopted, that overseas donations cap could pose another constraint on Farage's fundraising efforts. Reform UK accepted a £9 million donation from Thai-based crypto tycoon Christopher Harborne last year.