Nigel Farage Allies Build Corporate and Political Presence in Montenegro, Financial Times Reports

Several close allies of UK Reform Party leader Nigel Farage have established a notable corporate and political footprint in Montenegro, the Financial Times reported. According to Foresight News, those linked to the activity include Christopher Harborne, described as a major Tether investor who gifted Farage 5 million pounds, as well as Reform Party board member Gawain Towler, former party finance head Mehrtash A'zami, and longtime aide George Cottrell, who previously served a prison sentence in the United States for fraud. The report said Montenegro’s current prime minister, Milojko Spajic, has promoted the crypto industry and had previously wanted crypto mining and trading to account for nearly one-third of Montenegro’s GDP. It also said Spajic was an early investor in the now-collapsed Terraform Labs. Cottrell’s political consultancy, Geostrategy, has an office in Montenegro and has been accused of supporting Spajic’s election campaign, though its lawyer denied the allegation, the report said. The Reform Party has advocated regulatory changes to make the UK a crypto hub, and Harborne is also described as the party’s largest donor, according to the report.