Nigel Farage £5m Gift Probe Resumes Just as Crypto Betting Site Shuts Down

Nigel Farage may have comfortably won the Clacton by-election this week, but one of the controversies that prompted it has far from ‘gone away’.

Farage secured 63% of the vote after resigning his seat and triggering the unusual contest himself. However, his return to Parliament means the investigation into a £5 million gift from crypto billionaire, Christopher Harborne, can now resume.

At almost exactly the same time as the by-election result was announced, Tether.bet ceased operations. This is particularly relevant, as the offshore crypto gambling site is heavily linked to Farage associate and Reform UK supporter George Cottrell.

The two controversies are certainly separate, and at present there is no suggestion that Farage himself operated or gambled with Tether.bet. However, the timing must force us to reassess the relationship between gambling, crypto and British politics.

What happened to Tether.bet?

Tether.bet was an online sportsbook and casino operating from Montenegro. It was best known in the media for allowing customers to place extremely large bets using cryptocurrencies.

The platform has now ceased operating. Customers have been told to withdraw any remaining balances and at present, no reason for the closure has been publicly confirmed. Though the shutdown does follow scrutiny over whether the site had been serving British customers - despite not holding a UK Gambling Commission licence.