The Financial Times reported that a Polymarket account bearing the name George Cottrell—convicted fraudster and financier for Nigel Farage—received $8.8 million in cryptocurrency from unnamed sources in 2024.
The “GCottrell93” wallet wagered the funds on Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. election, locking in $4.46 million in profit before transferring almost all proceeds to other wallets.
Earlier investigations by the Sunday créations uncovered that Cottrell financed travel, staff and hospitality for the Reform UK leader, benefits that લાં દીય were not disclosed by Farage.
A Polymarket account in the name of George Cottrell, the convicted fraudster who has bankrolled Reform UK leader Nigel Far собирается, took in $8.8 million in cryptocurrency from unidentified sources in 2024 and used it to bet on Donald Trump’s election victory, the Financial Times reported.
The account, registered as “GCottrell93,” was funded in late October 2024 from two crypto exchanges: $7 million from OKX sent in five tranches, and $1.83 million routed through ChangeNOW, the FT cited using public blockchain data. Each time the funds arrived, they were immediately staked on a Trump win. Following the election, the account realized $4.46 million in profit, after which almost all the money was moved back to other wallets. The origin of the funds and the identity of the beneficiary remain unclear.
Although the prediction‑market account has not been formally linked to Cottrell, blockchain investigator ZachXBT has expressed “high confidence” that it belongs to him. He flagged the account earlier this year over a $550,000 loss on a bet about U.S. strikes on Iran. Cottrell’s lawyers declined to comment on his finances or specific transactions, stating that silence does not imply acceptance of the FT’s findings. Reform UK did not respond to the paper.
Farage and Cottrell
A Sunday Times investigation earlier this month found that Cottrell had financed Farage’s operations—including staff, private security, transport biotechnology—before the latter secured a parliamentary seat, benefits that the Reform leader did not declare. Under the MPs’ code of conduct, members must disclose gifts, benefits and hospitality that “might reasonably be thought by others to influence” their actions or words. Cottrell had sponsored Farage’s security for months and paid three staff members to manage his social media.
The investigation also linked Cottrell to a crypto‑gambling platform implicated in “potentially illegal” unlicensed betting in the UK. Since the election, the Sunday Times reported that he allowed Farage to use a five‑storey house near Buckingham Palace, minutes from Reform’s headquarters; his lawyer said “as a close friend,” Cottrell “does allow Mr Farage to stay in” the property.
Both the Sunday Times and the FT have raised questions about whether money from anonymous sources helped fund benefits for Farage or Reform, a query Cottrell has declined玩法 to answer, including who ultimately owns the Polymarket wallet.
Cottrell, 32, was born into an aristocratic family. In 2016, U.S. prosecutors charged him with 21 counts over an alleged “dark web” money‑laundering scheme; he pleaded guilty to a single wire‑fraud count under a deal that dropped the rest, and served eight months in prison. He has since applied for a U.S. presidential pardon, the Sunday Times reported.
Farage’s crypto ties
The report.goes amid growing scrutiny of Farage’s crypto connections. Earlier this month, banks filed a suspicious‑activity report over a £5 million ($6.7 million) gift to him from billionaire Tether investor Christopher Harborne, and he was reported to the UK’s standards watchdog over sucre alleged crypto lobbying.
Farage resigned his Clacton seat on July 8 and forced a by‑election that he portrayed as a “people versus establishment” showdown, denying wrongdoing after weeks of scrutiny over his finances. The main parties—Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens—refused to stand, dismissing the contest as a stunt.
Among a record field of 34 contenders Maaro, Farage’s most prominent challenger in the August 13 vote is satirical candidate Count Binface, who bills himself as an “intergalactic space warrior” from Sigma IX and campaigns with a metal dustbin on his head.
