Federal agents conducted a dawn raid on the downtown New York apartment of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan on Wednesday, seizing his phone and electronic devices, as confirmed by the company.
The raid comes on the heels of last week’s presidential election, during which Polymarket, a crypto-powered election betting site, offered odds heavily favoring Donald Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris, in stark contrast to public opinion polls.
Coplan, the 26-year-old founder of Polymarket, was awakened at 6 a.m. by FBI agents demanding access to his devices. The Department of Justice is reportedly investigating the platform for allegedly allowing U.S. users to place bets on the site, according to Bloomberg News.
While Polymarket declined to address the specific allegations, a spokesperson called the FBI’s actions “obvious political retribution by the outgoing administration against Polymarket for offering a market that correctly predicted the 2024 presidential outcome.” Coplan was not arrested or taken into custody, the company told Reuters. Both the FBI and DOJ declined to comment on the situation.
Election Betting Sparks Widespread Attention
Polymarket gained extensive media coverage leading up to the election for setting Trump’s odds notably higher than Harris’s, even as polls showed a neck-and-neck race. Adding to the intrigue was a mysterious “Polymarket whale” from France, who placed massive bets on Trump’s victory, reportedly earning over $46 million in profits as Trump’s odds soared on the platform.
French Gambling Authorities Now Investigating Polymarket
Following these high-stakes bets, France’s gambling regulator announced an investigation into whether Polymarket complies with French law, further intensifying scrutiny of the offshore betting site.
