Crypto Billionaire Ben Delo Donates £36 Million to Reform UK

Ben Delo, the co-founder of cryptocurrency trading platform BitMEX, has donated £36 million to Reform UK, matching a donation from fellow crypto investor Christopher Harborne. This staggering sum is intended to swell Reform's coffers by £1 million per month in the run-up to the last possible date for a General Election.

Delo, 42, is a British crypto billionaire and free speech philanthropist who has been making waves with his donations. Despite his early struggles, including being expelled from three primary schools before being diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, Delo went on to excel at Oxford University, graduating with a double first in maths and computer science in 2005.

After working for IBM and trading firm GSA Capital, Delo moved to Hong Kong to work for JP Morgan and became fascinated by Bitcoin. He co-founded BitMEX in 2014, which has since become one of the world's leading cryptocurrency exchanges, with Delo owning a 30% stake worth $3.6 billion.

However, Delo's success was marred by controversy when he and his fellow founders were charged by the US government for failing to introduce anti-money laundering controls. Delo pleaded guilty and paid a $10 million fine in 2020, but has since been pardoned by Donald Trump as part of a loosening of regulations.