BitMEX Co-Founder Gives $27M to London Lab on Trump Pardon

BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo has committed $27 million to the London Institute for Mathematical Sciences, ranking among the largest private gifts ever directed at a UK research institution outside Oxford and Cambridge. The donation, confirmed on Tuesday by Times Higher Education, follows Delo's presidential pardon from Donald Trump and signals a sharp philanthropic turn for the crypto entrepreneur.

Delo's $27 Million Commitment to LIMS

The pledge from Ben Delo totals 20 million British pounds, or roughly $27 million, split into two tranches. The first $13.3 million will be delivered immediately, while the remaining $13.3 million hinges on the Mayfair-based institute securing matching contributions from other donors, according to Times Higher Education.

The gift serves as the cornerstone of a wider fundraising campaign targeting an $80 million endowment, a war chest designed to guarantee the institute's financial independence for decades to come.

I would like to see LIMS winning Fields Medals and Nobel Prizes — they are already doing some world-class things and I want to help.

— Ben Delo, BitMEX Co-Founder

Why Did Delo Choose LIMS Over a Major University?

Delo explained that he backed LIMS rather than a larger university because the institute allows leading researchers to concentrate on their work, free from teaching duties or administrative overhead. He praised the organization's model, noting it even provides coaching on research methodology.

The BitMEX co-founder criticized the United Kingdom's scientific funding landscape, describing it as a "lacklustre and inconsistent approach to scientific funding" that fails to support cutting-edge inquiry. Delo serves as a LIMS trustee and previously funded the Ben Delo Fellowship at the London Institute for Mathematical Sciences in 2025.

From Crypto Exchange to Criminal Case to Pardon

Delo co-founded the cryptocurrency derivatives exchange BitMEX in 2014. In 2022, he pleaded guilty to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act alongside his co-founders and paid a $10 million fine to US authorities.

He subsequently received a presidential pardon from Donald Trump in March 2025, clearing his federal record. Beyond LIMS, Delo has directed support toward causes spanning neurodiversity, academic freedom, and mathematical education.

Inside the London Institute for Mathematical Sciences

Founded in 2011 by physicist Thomas Fink, LIMS operates out of the historic Royal Institution in London, occupying rooms once used by pioneering chemist Michael Faraday. The institute focuses exclusively on research, awarding three-year fellowships in theoretical physics, pure mathematics, and artificial intelligence.

In recent years LIMS has welcomed exiled Russian and Ukrainian scientists and drawn researchers from the United States. The institute had not responded to a request for comment by publication time.

UK Crypto Donation Debate Intensifies

Delo's announcement arrives amid a wider UK conversation about cryptocurrency and political giving. Last week the chair of Britain's national security committee called for an immediate temporary ban on political donations made in crypto, warning that such payments risk enabling foreign interference in domestic elections.

The push followed Reform UK's receipt of a record $12 million donation from early crypto investor Christopher Harborne, the largest single political contribution ever made by a living individual in Britain. These developments highlight how crypto wealth is reshaping scientific research and political fundraising in the UK.