Labour has condemned as "astonishing and deeply serious" the disclosure that a £5m gift to Nigel Farage from a cryptocurrency billionaire was reported to the National Crime Agency (NCA) by bankers who feared it might involve laundered money. The revelation intensifies pressure on the Reform UK leader over his financial affairs, coming just a day after he resigned his Clacton-on-Sea seat to trigger a byelection — a move critics characterised as an attempt to deflect scrutiny. Labour chair Anna Turley urged Farage to "come clean and cooperate" with the NCA and answer to the parliamentary watchdog, while all other main parties have said they will boycott the contest.

The £5m came from Thailand-based Reform donor Christopher Harborne, with bankers raising a suspicious activity report (SAR) with the NCA on 16 May 2024 — a step that invites examination rather than proving wrongdoing. Farage said he did not know about the SAR, has "no reason to doubt the ultimate source of the money", and has consistently denied any wrongdoing, arguing he had no duty to disclose the gift as he was not then a politician; he also claims the information was obtained illegally. Reform's deputy leader Richard Tice accused the NCA of leaking financial data, while the agency declined to confirm or deny receipt of any SAR. The Liberal Democrats' Ed Davey called for the byelection to be delayed pending investigation, though foreign secretary Yvette Cooper dismissed it as a "total waste of time".