FBI Raids Polymarket CEO’s Home Following Platform’s Accurate Trump Victory Prediction
In a dramatic development first reported by the New York Post, FBI agents conducted an early morning raid on Wednesday at the Manhattan apartment of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan, seizing his phone and other electronic devices. The raid comes just one week after the prediction market platform accurately forecasted Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election.
According to sources close to the matter, federal agents woke the 26-year-old entrepreneur at 6 a.m. in his Soho residence. While no arrests were made and no charges have been filed, the timing of the raid has raised questions about potential political motivations.
A Polymarket spokesperson characterized the action as “obvious political retribution by the outgoing administration” against the platform for correctly predicting the election outcome. The platform had shown Trump with a 58.6% chance of winning on the morning before Election Day, contrary to many traditional polls.
Bloomberg later reported that the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating Polymarket for allegedly allowing U.S. users to access the site, despite a 2022 settlement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission that required the platform to block American users. While the platform officially restricts U.S. access, reports suggest users can bypass this limitation through VPNs.
The platform garnered significant attention during the election season, with its presidential election market attracting $3.7 billion in bets. Most notably, a French trader known by the alias Théo reportedly earned $85 million in profits from Trump-related bets.
“Polymarket is a fully transparent prediction market that helps everyday people better understand the events that matter most to them, including elections,” the company spokesperson stated. “We charge no fees, take no trading positions, and allow observers from around the world to analyze all market data as a public good.”
The incident has sparked debate about the role of prediction markets in elections and their influence on public opinion, particularly as Polymarket’s forecasts proved more accurate than traditional polling methods in predicting the 2024 presidential outcome.
