Nigel Farage's mysterious crypto billionaire backer catapulted into Top 10 of Sunday Times Rich List

Crypto tycoon Christopher Harborne, Reform UK's biggest backer, has seen his wealth soar according to the latest Sunday Times Rich List. Mr Harborne’s mega wealth has been estimated at almost £18.2billion, catapulting him to sixth place on the latest Sunday Times Rich List. It is the first time researchers have included the Thai-based businessmen in the list. Even then, the authors of the report admit the estimation of his fortune could be on the low side because of difficulties around accessing his financial affairs and a conservative estimate for the value of the crypto company in which he owns a big stake. “ Nigel Farage has found himself a really useful cash machine,” declared Robert Watts, compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List . Sheffield-born Mr Harborne, 62, who is also known by the Thai name Chakrit Sakunkrit, has donated more than £22million to Reform in the past seven years. But his dealings have been thrust into the spotlight by the recent revelation that he gave Mr Farage a £5million “personal gift”. Mr Farage failed to declare the cash before becoming an MP. He insists the money was to pay for security. However, it has prompted an investigation by Parliamentary standards chief Daniel Greenberg . One reason Mr Harborne has not been included the Sunday Times Rich List - which covers British nationals even of they are based abroad - until now is because of the complex nature his business interests. “He is a Rich List compiler’s nightmare,” Mr Watts admitted. Among the few details in the public domain is his estimated £357million stake in British defence giant Qinetiq through a company called Klear Kite LLC, which is registered in the US state of Delaware. Mr Harborne also founded jet fuel broker AML Global, which has more than 1,200 locations around the world , but which the Sunday Times List was unable to put a value on. However, AML has potentially benefitted greatly from a surge in jet fuel prices in the wake of the Middle East war . The biggest chunk of Mr Harborne’s estimated £18.177billion wealth is his 12% stake in Tether. Mr Farage has publicly backed the company, telling LBC radio in September last year: “Stablecoins are the way which money goes from conventional currencies through into cryptocurrencies and back again. Tether is about to be valued as a $500billion company.” Were that to happen then Mr Harborne’s stake in Tether would be worth £44billion. That would make him Britain’s richest person based on this year’s Rich List, overtaking Sanjay and Dheeraj Hinduja and their family, whose wealth is estimated at £38billion through their global conglomerate. Mr Watts said of its estimate for Mr Harborne’s wealth: “It could be conservative about how much he is really worth.” Mr Harborne is included among the changing fortunes of the UK’s 350 wealthiest individuals and families. Their combined wealth this year has risen by 1.4% to £784billion - a sum larger than the annual economy of Belgium, Sweden, and Israel . There are now 157 UK billionaires, 20 fewer than four years ago. The minimum entry level dips to £340million. The top 10 includes chemicals magnate and Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who has slipped to the ninth place, with his wealth falling from £17billion to £15.2billion. Another dropping down the list is bagless vacuum cleaner investor and tycoon Sir James Dyson, whose fortune has tumbled from £20.8billion to £12billion. But Nik Storonksy, co-founder of payments firm Revolut, has seen his wealth climb to £16.4billion - average gains of £25.8million a day since last year’s Rich List. It came as separate research by the TUC found the number of billionaires has doubled since 2010, while real wages for ordinary workers have stagnated. The average wealth of a Sunday Times Rich List member is over 7,600 times higher than an average UK household, it also discovered., and while there were only nine billionaires when the list began in 1989, there are now 157. TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “We need an economy that rewards work – not just wealth. “Under the Conservatives, the wealthiest were allowed to feather their nests while working people suffered an epidemic of insecure work and the worst pay stagnation in two centuries. Clearly wealth has not trickled down – it has been hoarded by those at the top. This isn’t right. With ordinary people struggling to pay the bills, it’s time for billionaires to pay their fair share in tax to protect households and firms from the effects of Donald Trump ’s illegal war. “People have had it with a system where those with the broadest shoulders don’t pull their weight.” The top 10 from this year’s Sunday Times Rich List is: 1. Sanjay and Dheeraj Hinduja and family - £38billion 2. David and Simon Reuben and family - £27.9billion 3. Sir Leonard Blavatnik (investor and philanthropist) - £26.8billion 4. Idan Ofer (shipping tycoon) - £24.5billion 5. Guy, George, Alannah and Galen Weston and family (heirs and retailers) - £18.9billion 6. Christopher Harborne - £18.177billion 7. Nik Storonsky - £16.4billion 8. Alex Gerko (financial trader) - £16billion 9. Sir Jim Ratcliffe - £15.19billion 10. Igor and Dmitry Bukhman (mobile gaming ) - £14.26billion.