Good morning and happy Sunday all,
It’s Sarah here. Following the positive feedback we had to our Sunday publishing experiment last week, I’m bringing you the latest instalment in our investigation into the political donations of billionaire Christopher Harborne (and now – according to the new Sunday TIme Rich List – Britain’s sixth richest man! Although he is based in Thailand … hmmm).
Until now, we’ve always referred to Harborne as a cryptobillionaire, because the bulk of his wealth has been accrued via investments in blockchain-enabled currency. Today, our reporters Carole Cadwalladr and Charlie Young introduce you to Harborne the military investor – a diversion he seems to have set out on while building a personal relationship with Boris Johnson as the Ukraine war developed in 2022.
This is an eye-opening tale of helicopter rides to Chequers, lunchtime calls to the White House, and one of the UK’s most cutting-edge defence companies. It is not, it’s safe to say, a world most of us recognise.
As more questions build about Nigel Farage’s £5m “gift” from Harborne in 2024, his four (count ’em) second homes, and his pro-crypto lobbying, Carole had the customary aggressive pushback to her questions from Harborne’s legal firm this week. But we’re not called the Nerve for nothing and we’ll bring you more on this story soon.
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Here’s the report, and below that are links to our other stories in the series. Enjoy the rest of the weekend (to stay up for England v Mexico or not? It’s a tough call) and we’ll be back again on Tuesday.
Johnson, the jet, the billionaire and the donations... how Christopher Harborne became a big player in defence
Soon after the Ukraine war broke out, the investor emerged as a highly favoured backer of the Tory government – and then a major shareholder in privatised defence lab QinetiQ at a transformative moment for its fortunes. Read Carole Cadwalladr and Charlie Young’s report here.
In our ongoing series the Harborne Receipts, the Nerve is exploring the nature and implications of financial links between Christopher Harborne, Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage:
We tracked the pattern of Harborne’s donations (£30m+ and counting) with pro-crypto announcements by Farage, Johnson and their parties
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L-r: Lynsey, Sarah, Carole, Jane and Imogen