More Reform UK transactions worth millions reported to National Crime Agency

Clockwise from top left: Christopher Harborne, Fiona Cottrell, Nigel Farage, George Cottrell and Richard Tice. Composite: Guardian Design/Alamy/Getty/PA/George Cracknell Wright/JNVisuals/Tayfun Salci View image in fullscreen Clockwise from top left: Christopher Harborne, Fiona Cottrell, Nigel Farage, George Cottrell and Richard Tice. Composite: Guardian Design/Alamy/Getty/PA/George Cracknell Wright/JNVisuals/Tayfun Salci More Reform UK transactions worth millions reported to National Crime Agency Exclusive: Bankers have raised potential money-laundering concerns over loans and donations involving senior party figures UK politics live – latest updates A host of transactions involving Reform UK’s most senior figures and donations to the party caused bankers to report potential money-laundering concerns to the National Crime Agency, a Guardian investigation has found. On Tuesday, the Guardian revealed that the undisclosed £5m gift provided to the Reform leader, Nigel Farage, by a cryptocurrency billionaire shortly before the 2024 general election was reported to the NCA . It can now be revealed that, separately, banking staff judged that transfers of funds between Richard Tice, the party’s deputy leader, a major donor, Fiona Cottrell , and the senior party figure and convicted fraudster George Cottrell, required further investigation, according to finance industry sources. Suspicious activity reports (SARs) raised by bankers were passed to the NCA for examination. Tice, via lawyers, threatened to injunct the Guardian to stop it publishing these details. Without responding to any of the questions put to him, Tice then appears to have shared the allegations contained in the Guardian’s requests for comment with the Telegraph, which wrote them up without credit or contact ahead of publication. The disclosures have come from a Guardian investigation in which a number of finance industry sources have provided information they believe raises questions over the funding of Reform UK. Sources have told the Guardian that despite explanations provided by senior figures involved with Reform UK regarding the source or purpose of the funds, bankers still considered it necessary to file SARs. The Guardian understands finance industry figures have raised at least four SARs relating to concerns about transactions involving senior figures in Reform: One relates to a £1m donation made to Britain Means Business, a fundraising organisation for Reform UK, before the last general election. Half of the £1m was then transferred by Tice, as director of the company, to Reform UK. Renamed from Leave Means Leave, Britain Means Business is a company that is used to help fund Reform. The £1m seemingly came from the aristocrat and Reform UK donor Fiona Cottrell. In this instance, the Guardian understands bank staff were not satisfied that the funds had ultimately come from her. The NCA has sought help from a foreign partner agency to trace the original source of the funds. Two othe