Former home secretary calls for cap on political donations as govt says it’s ‘not a priority’
Former home secretary Lord Blunkett has called for a cap on political donations made by companies and stricter rules on “where money originates”.
The Labour stalwart – who is now a member of the House of Lords – told Sky News that he is not against firms or trade unions being able to give cash to parties but “it seems sensible to have an upper ceiling” on how much.
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He also called for the “prevention of smart ways” of foreign money entering British politics.
While political parties are banned from accepting foreign donations, critics say “loopholes” mean people abroad can still give money via a UK-based company.
The issue has been in the spotlight amid reports X owner Elon Musk could give millions to Reform UK.
The world’s richest man was born in South Africa and has American citizenship so wouldn’t be able to donate directly. However he has set up a new company in the UK, X.AI LONDON, which was incorporated and registered with Companies House in December.
Elon Musk. Pic: Reuters
Speaking in the House of Lords last week, Lord Blunkett urged the government to act now “to safeguard our future” and “see off those – whether they are malign state actors or multibillionaires – who seek to interfere in our democracy”.
It came amid a debate in the upper chamber which heard calls to ban company donations altogether. Other peers, like Labour’s Lord Dubs, have backed a crackdown on foreign donors giving money to UK pressure groups.
Asked what measures he would support, Lord Blunkett told Sky News he is concerned about funding from outside the UK “for not only surreptitious ways of funding political parties, but the political process as a whole”.
The Labour peer said: “I am not against companies or Trade Unions being able to make donations, but it seems sensible to have an upper ceiling, and therefore a cap, on how much.
“In addition we need much more strictly enforceable rules on where money originates, the legitimacy of the claim that it is ‘domestically generated’ and the prevention of smart ways of substantial donations from overseas.”
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‘Musk is going to support Reform’ says Nigel Farage.
What are the current rules?
There is no upper limit on how much an individual or company can donate to a political party, as long as the money comes from a “permissible source”.
This includes a person who is on the UK electoral register, UK-registered companies and trade unions, and UK-registered “unincorporated associations”.
However there has long been concern about the true source of money that comes from companies in particular, as they can donate cash they have received from foreign or opaque sources.
According to Transparency International, almost £1 in every £10 reported by political parties and their members since 2001 has come from unknown or questionable sources.
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The campaign group was one of several behind a report last year which warned that laws aimed at preventing dodgy money and foreign interference entering British politics are “riddled with loopholes”.
The independent experts recommended measures including a cap on donations, reducing the amount parties can spend on campaigning, and requiring political parties by law to identify the true source of funds.
The likes of the Electoral Commission watchdog have also called for a limit on company donations so they don’t exceed its net profits generated in the UK within the preceding two years.
Cap ‘not a priority’
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PM wants ‘transparency’ over donations
The issue is being pushed in the House of Lords, with peers saying they are able to speak more freely than MPs who may not want to ask difficult questions of their government.
Labour promised to strengthen the rules around donations in its manifesto, but it is not clear what measures are being looked at or when they could be introduced.
Speaking for the government in the Lords on Wednesday, junior minister Lord Khan of Burnley said a cap on donations is “not a current priority” but “strengthening the rules around donations is” – and proposals will be set out “in due course”.
A Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson told Sky News: “It is vital we protect our democracy from malign actors who seek to interfere in UK elections through illegitimate political donations.
“That’s why the government committed in its manifesto to strengthen the rules around donations to political parties, and work is ongoing to meet this commitment.”
Acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York (EDNY) John Durham has departed as President Donald Trump’s pick takes control of the office.
In a May 5 notice, the US Attorney’s Office for EDNY said Joseph Nocella will serve as interim US Attorney for the region for 120 days or until a Senate-confirmed nominee assumes the role. Nocella’s appointment came as jury selection began in the criminal trial of Braden John Karony, the former CEO of crypto firm SafeMoon.
It’s unclear how the advancement of Nocella, appointed by US President Donald Trump this month, could affect prosecutors’ case against Karony, who faces charges of securities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy. Nocella said he intended to help prosecute “narcotics-traffickers, gang members, terrorists, human-traffickers and other criminals.”
The former SafeMoon CEO asked the court in February to consider pushing back the start of the trial based on “significant changes” Trump had proposed affecting US securities laws, potentially impacting his criminal case.
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Though not as well known for criminal cases involving high-profile figures in the crypto industry, the Eastern District of New York has been responsible for overseeing cases against individuals tied to digital assets, including a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) complaint against Hex founder Richard Heart and fraudsters.
Its neighboring district, the Southern District of New York, will oversee the sentencing of former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky on May 8. Jay Clayton, a Wall Street insider and the former chair of the SEC, became the interim US Attorney for the district in April.
Criminal trial to start on May 6
SafeMoon’s Karony, Kyle Nagy, and Thomas Smith were charged in November 2023 for “diverted and misappropriated millions of dollars’ worth” of the platform’s SFM token between 2021 and 2022. Karony has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has been free on a $3 million bond since February 2024.
In a May 5 filing, Karony agreed to have jury selection for his trial proceed under US Magistrate Judge James Cho. District Judge Eric Komitee is expected to oversee the trial starting on May 6.
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US President Donald Trump’s crypto businesses are drawing increased scrutiny on Capitol Hill and beginning to influence the progress of US digital asset legislation. As Republican lawmakers in the US House of Representatives unveiled their draft of a digital asset market structure bill on May 5, Democrats prepared for a united response to Donald Trump’s deepening connections with the industry.
Speaking to Cointelegraph on May 5, a Democratic staffer with knowledge of the matter said that House Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Maxine Waters planned to lead some members of her party out of a Republican-led hearing discussing digital assets. The May 6 hearing, entitled “American Innovation and the Future of Digital Assets” and led by Committee Chair French Hill, could address draft legislation proposed by Republican lawmakers to establish a crypto market regulatory structure.
In a May 5 statement, Rep. Hill and three top Republicans unveiled the draft bill, which could clarify the treatment of digital assets by the US’s financial regulators: the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Hill and others echoed some of Trump’s talking points on crypto — e.g, making the US a “crypto capital of the world” — suggesting deference to the president’s previously announced policies.
The draft bill included a provision requiring the SEC and CFTC to issue joint rules defining digital commodities. According to the text, transactions involving digital commodities “shall be deemed not to be an offer or sale of an investment contract” as long as the purchaser did not have “an ownership interest or other interest in the revenues, profits, or assets.”
According to the Democratic staffer, rules required all members of the House Financial Services Committee to agree to move forward with the digital asset hearing, suggesting that Waters intended to block the Republican-controlled event and conduct a shadow hearing to explore Trump’s and his family’s ties to the crypto industry. At least nine Democrats have reportedly considered a similar move to oppose a proposed stablecoin bill in the Senate.
Calls for impeachment, criticism from both sides
Some members of Congress have already called for Trump’s impeachment after he offered the opportunity for some of his top memecoin holders to tour the White House and attend a private dinner. In addition to the memecoin, the president’s family has backed the firm World Liberty Financial, which recently launched its own stablecoin, and an Abu Dhabi-based investment firm used the USD1 stablecoin to settle a $2 billion investment in Binance.
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Waters, according to the staffer, requested that Hill and Republicans amend any proposed legislation to explicitly prevent potential conflicts of interest in which Trump could personally enrich himself through crypto ventures. Cointelegraph reached out to Hill’s office but did not receive a response at the time of publication. The Arkansas lawmaker reportedly said in March that the Trump family’s involvement in the crypto industry makes related legislation “more complicated.”
Republican lawmakers in the United States currently have control of the House, Senate, and presidency. At least two senators supportive of Trump have criticized his memecoin dinner, hinting that the president was selling access to his office. It’s unclear at the time of publication who among the memecoin holders could attend the May 22 dinner in person.
Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions
This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.
Asset manager VanEck has asked US regulators for permission to list an exchange-traded fund (ETF) holding BNB, the native token of Binance’s BNB Chain, regulatory filings show.
The ETF is designed to accumulate spot BNB (BNB) tokens and “may, from time to time, stake a portion of the [fund’s] assets through one or more trusted staking providers,” according to the ETF’s S-1 prospectus. The filing marks the first time an asset manager has filed for a BNB ETF in the United States.
The BNB token has a market capitalization of roughly $84 billion, according to data from CoinMarketCap. As of May 5, BNB stakers earn a yield of approximately 2.5%, according to data from Stakingrewards.com.
Binance’s BNB Chain is among the most popular smart contract networks, with a total value locked (TVL) of nearly $6 billion, according to data from DefiLlama.
Related: Binance co-founder CZ proposes Bitcoin, BNB for Kyrgyzstan reserves
Bitcoin’s “spillover” effect?
The filing comes days after Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao reportedly said he expects the popularity of Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs to eventually “spill over” into altcoins.
“This cycle so far has been the ETFs. And it’s almost all Bitcoin. Ether hasn’t had as much success but Bitcoin success will spill over to the others eventually,” CZ reportedly said during the Token2049 conference in Dubai.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted net inflows of more than $40 billion since launching in January of 2024, according to data from Farside Investors.
VanEck’s filing is the newest in a flurry of filings seeking to list ETFs holding altcoins.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has acknowledged dozens of cryptocurrency ETF proposals since US President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20.
They include plans for ETFs holding native layer-1 tokens such as Solana (SOL) as well as memecoins such as Dogecoin (DOGE).
VanEck has filed to list other cryptocurrency ETFs over the past few months, including funds holding Solana and Avalanche (AVAX).
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