Christopher Harborne entered the Sunday Times Rich List 2026 in sixth place with an estimated fortune of £18.2 billion, while a parliamentary investigation involving Nigel Farage was launched at the same time.
Most of Harborne’s wealth is tied to his reported 12% stake in Tether, the stablecoin company estimated to be worth around $200 billion.
Harborne, who has lived in Thailand for more than 20 years and holds Thai citizenship under the name Chakrit Sakunkrit, was described as the wealthiest British-born person on the 2026 list.
The release of the rich list coincided with a formal inquiry opened by the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner on May 15.
The investigation is examining whether Farage violated parliamentary conduct rules by failing to declare a £5 million gift received from Harborne before the 2024 election.
Farage has defended the payment, saying it was an unconditional personal gift intended to cover security costs. He also described the money as a reward for his long campaign supporting Brexit.
A property purchase worth around £1.4 million made shortly after receiving the funds had already attracted separate public scrutiny.
Harborne has become one of the biggest financial supporters of Reform UK, donating more than £22 million to the party since it was founded.
In August 2025, he reportedly gave Reform UK a £9 million donation, which was described at the time as the largest political donation ever made by a living individual in British history.
Reform UK also became the first Westminster political party to publicly accept cryptocurrency donations.
The scrutiny around Harborne’s financial relationship with Farage goes beyond the parliamentary investigation. In April, the Liberal Democrats asked the Financial Conduct Authority to review Farage’s ties to Bitcoin treasury company Stack BTC after he appeared in promotional material while reportedly holding a 6.31% stake in the firm.
If the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner concludes that parliamentary rules were broken, possible penalties could include a formal apology, suspension from Parliament, or even a by-election in Clacton.
