A Sunday Times investigation has linked Christopher Harborne and George Cottrell to Tether.bet, an offshore betting platform that was never licensed by the UK Gambling Commission. The site, which allowed large cryptocurrency wagers, shut down last week and told users to request refunds after saying its brand was no longer in business.
According to the report as relayed by Vijesti, British VIP customers did not place bets through the public website. Instead, they dealt with a private client department, often through an encrypted messaging app, and were offered what Tether.bet called the highest limits in the world. Ordinary users in Britain were blocked from the site because it lacked a local licence.
The article says VIP clients could stake hundreds of thousands of pounds on a single bet, far above the limits imposed by major UK bookmakers on sports such as football or horse racing. A London client could simply message an account manager, and qualification for VIP status depended on being referred by an existing user.
The financial plumbing, according to the report, ran through Fispay and IFX, Harborne’s cross-border payments company. Fispay handled money for Tether.bet customers and was one of at least two UK companies used to receive deposits and pay winnings, while Fispay itself made and received payments through IFX (UK) Ltd, which Harborne bought in 2021 for £112 million.
One leaked debt-settlement request to a British gambler included Fispay’s account details. The article says another set of bank documents showed British gamblers were told to pay thousands of pounds into Fispay accounts for sports bets, while Tether.bet’s paperwork referred to a licence in Curaçao and carried the logo of Salon Prive, a Montenegrin casino.
Neither Tether.bet nor Fispay was ever licensed by the Gambling Commission to provide betting services to customers in Britain. The commission says remote gambling covers all gambling done through remote communication, and that businesses based abroad must have a licence if they serve British consumers.
The article also cites the Gambling Act 2005, saying it is an offence to provide gambling services to people in the UK without the right licence if the provider knew, or ought to have known, that the services were being used there. The offence can bring up to one year in prison.
Harborne said he was not involved in the running of IFX, and the company said it operates in line with applicable regulations and legislation. Will Marwick, IFX’s chief executive, said Harborne is the ultimate beneficial owner of the business but has no role in its management, operations or corporate governance.
George Cottrell was described in the report as a convicted fraudster and a key figure in Tether.bet. He said through lawyers that his relationship with the platform was limited to being a user, and that he never solicited clients for any betting company. His spokesman also said he never invested in, owned or operated a betting company or casino.
The piece places the platform alongside the wider scrutiny surrounding Farage’s donors. In April 2024, Harborne paid Farage £5 million, which Farage described as an unconditional gift, while Cottrell provided in-kind support for several years, including staff, security, social media support, drivers and air travel.
Farage is under fresh scrutiny over whether he failed to declare those gifts, and the report says the revelations raise questions about his judgment in accepting support from Cottrell. The article also says Tether.bet kept advertising to VIP clients in Britain until its abrupt closure, before directing users to the partner platform NNVIP88.
