Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan's Manhattan apartment was recently raided by FBI agents. The raid took place early Wednesday when the 26-year-old CEO was roused from his bed. The agents reportedly demanded he turn over his phone and other electronic devices.
According to the New York Post, the raid took place a week after the online betting platform predicted Donald Trump's victory with accuracy in the US presidential elections. A source told the outlet that the agents did not reveal the reason for the raid. However, the source suspected it was political retribution because of the platform's election result prediction.
The source called it "grand political theater at its worst."
"They could have asked his lawyer for any of these things. Instead, they staged a so-called raid so they can leak it to the media and use it for obvious political reasons," the source added.
"This is obvious political retribution by the outgoing administration against Polymarket for providing a market that correctly called the 2024 presidential election."
However, as per a Polymarket spokesperson, Coplan was not arrested or charged following the raid. The representative also claimed that the company is a "fully transparent prediction market" which helps people understand important events better.
Polymarket is a trading platform and prediction market. It has not allowed trading in the US, since 2022 after the company was forced to pause its trading and pay a $1.4 million penalty to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission citing failure to register. Only about a week ago, Coplan announced the company was planning to return to the US.
The morning before Election Day, the platform predicted a 58.6% chance of Trump winning against Harris's 41.4%. The company has also been linked to the President-elect.
Shayne Coplan reacts to FBI raid
Shayne Coplan recently took to his X (formerly Twitter) handle to react to the FBI raid and called it a "discouraging" incident.
"It’s discouraging that the current administration would seek a last-ditch effort to go after companies they deem to be associated with political opponents."
"We are deeply committed to being non-partisan, and today is no different, but the incumbents should do some self-reflecting and recognize that taking a more pro-business, pro-startup approach may be what would have changed their fate this election.."
Shayne Coplan further mentioned how he was proud of the functioning of his company. He added,
"I'm also proud to say that the future of America, and in particular American entrepreneurship, has never been brighter. In the face of adversity, we build."
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Coplan's tweet has been met with support from several social media users.
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