Labour asks regulator to probe unlicensed gambling firms tied to Reform UK donors

Labour chair Bridget Phillipson wrote to the Gambling Commission urging an inquiry into Tether.bet and Fispay, companies linked to Reform UK supporters, over alleged unlicensed gambling activity in the UK.

Labour’s equality minister Bridget Phillipson has formally asked the Gambling Commission to examine two companies - Tether.bet, based in Montenegro, and Fispay Ltd, owned by Reform UK data-protection officer Mowbray Jackson - after a Sunday Times investigation suggested they were providing gambling services in Britain without the required licence. The inquiry follows scrutiny of a £5 million donation from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne to Reform leader Nigel Farage, which is already being examined by the parliamentary commissioner for standards.

George Cottrell, a convicted fraudster and long-time Farage ally, is reported to be a prominent customer of Tether.bet, which displayed a closure notice on its website on 12 August. Both Jackson and Cottrell have publicly asserted that they never supplied gambling facilities or solicited clients for betting firms. Phillipson’s correspondence asks the regulator to verify whether either firm has advertised or supported remote gambling to UK consumers in breach of the Gambling Act 2005, adding that the allegations add to ongoing questions about Reform’s funding and Farage’s transparency.