Cryptocurrency donations Electoral Commission should consider ban, minister says

Election officials should consider banning political donations made in cryptocurrency, a minister has said, amid concerns that foreign powers are using untraceable money to influence British politics.

- Kiran Stacey Rowena Mason

Pat McFadden, the Cabinet Office minister and a close ally of Keir Starmer, told MPs on Monday he thought there was a case for preventing crypto donations given how hard it is to trace their source.

Two months ago Nigel Farage announced his Reform UK party would become the first in British politics to accept donations in bitcoin, mirroring a move by Donald Trump in the 2024 US presidential election.

The campaign group Spotlight on Corruption has warned this practice could allow foreign countries to undermine British democracy. It said digital currencies "may play a role in future political interference schemes".

McFadden was asked by his Labour colleague Liam Byrne about banning cryptocurrency for political donations during a meeting of a joint Commons and Lords committee on the national security strategy.

"I definitely think it is something that the Electoral Commission should be considering," McFadden said. "The funding of democracy is often a controversial area but I think that it's very important that we know who is providing the donation, are they properly registered, what are the bona fides of that donation."