Britain to Follow Trump’s Lead and Bring Crypto Into the Forefront of Politics

There is something happening in the UK. The traditional political establishment of the Labour and Conservative parties looks like it is breaking apart, and for the first time in over a century there looks to be a new political party on the block, Reform UK.

For those new to the British political scene, Reform UK is a party that sits on the right of the political spectrum. Thanks to their stance on issues such as immigration and tax, Reform is starting to clean up crumbling Conservative support, dominated recent UK local elections, and now has a small presence in the House of Commons.

Led by the charismatic Nigel Farage, he is considered somewhat of a disciple of American President Donald Trump. Not afraid to shock and at times appear confrontational for the sake of headlines, many of Trump's most scrutinised policies seem to be making their way over to the UK. One of those is the willingness to advance crypto funds into the financial mainstream.

Reform looks to close the gap on rivals thanks to crypto funding

Some of the top casinos in Ontario may well offer up political markets and the odds and betting on Reform to win the UK General Election are shrinking at a rapid rate. 

According to the latest polls, Reform is currently positioned as the Labour Party's greatest challenger and with four years still to go until the next UK election, there is a wide belief that Reform have a genuine shot of making it all the way to power. 

One of the main barriers standing in Reform's way is a lack of funding. Both Labour and the Conservatives have an abundance of rich donors and at election time can raise millions to help fund their campaigns. 

As a new party Reform doesn’t have the financial might of their rivals but they are hoping that will all change.

Taking a leaf out of the Trump playbook, Reform have become the first UK political party to accept crypto donations, and it’s fair to say that Reform’s move to open their books to crypto has certainly raised an eyebrow or two. 

Farage is hoping that a willingness to back crypto could give him the keys to Number 10

America has been leading the way when it comes to how it approaches crypto funding and how it uses crypto as a legitimate source of political funding. 

Whilst Trump and J.D. Vance want to fast track crypto into the financial mainstream, over in the UK, the implementation of crypto is still light years behind. Mostly surrounded by layers and layers of red tape, at the last election not a single donation was made with crypto funds. Reform wants to change that.

Speaking at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, Farage was bullish about his approach to cryptocurrency and how he believes it’s time it starts to shake up the political elite. 

"My message to the British public, my message particularly to young people, is help us to help you bring our country properly into the 21st century. Let's recognise that crypto, Bitcoin, digital assets, are here to stay."

Much like Trump and Vance were able to attract the support of those in Silicon Valley who deal in Crypto, it’s clear that Farage is setting out his stall early in the hope that he can attract some of the UK’s crypto elite.

Funding is crucial to Reform. If an election were to take place tomorrow they would lack the financial firepower to contest seats in all four corners of the UK. If Reform are to change the shape of UK politics they need more money and it’s clear to see why they are trying to tap into the potential of the crypto markets. 

Red tape could stop Reform’s plans coming into existence 

It is expected that every party in the UK declare who donates money to them so that the money can be traced and authorised.  Every donation can be scrutinised and if it fails tests, that money can be declined.

Many believe that the long established processes regarding donations could be firmly put to the test if crypto funds are accepted.

After hearing Farage’s recent comments, Financial Crime Expert Steve Goodrich believes that accepting crypto donations could be a disaster.

‘The anonymity offered by digital currencies makes it nearly impossible for political parties to have confidence in their donors' identities. Crypto threatens a widening loophole that could allow unlimited anonymous donations to flow into British politics.’

Whatever side of the argument you stand on, one thing that is abundantly clear is that crypto has now entered the UK political mainstream and if Farage gets his way it isn’t going anywhere. 

The debate is set to rage on, and that’s exactly how Farage and Reform want it.