FBI raids house of election betting platform Polymarket's CEO Shayne Coplan, seizes devices

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Wednesday raided the house of betting platform Polymarket’s CEO Shayne Coplan.

In the run-up to the Election Day, Polymarket predicted Republican nominee Donald Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.

The FBI seized electronic devices from Coplan’s home, including his cell phone, according to The New York Times.

While the FBI has not formally commented on the case so far, The Times reported sources as saying that the raid was related to an alleged violation of agreement that Coplan had signed in 2022 to disallow political betting in the United States.

Meanwhile, Coplan has dubbed the raid a political vendetta. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), he said the raid was a “last-ditch effort” to go after opponent’s supporters.

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What is case against Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan?

The FBI and US attorney’s office for the South District of New York are pursuing a criminal investigation into Coplan’s alleged violation of a 2022 agreement, according to The Times.

In 2022, Polymarket agreed to stop providing betting services to US users and paid a $1.4 million fine. Now, Polymarket appears in violation of the pact.

The ongoing investigation appears to be focussed on whether Coplan ran Polymarket as an unlicensed commodities exchange, allowing users in the United States to place bets in violation of a settlement with the US government, according to The Times.

However, users can access betting via virtual private networks (VPNs)

‘It’s disgusting’

In a post on X, Coplan projected himself as a victim of a plot by political opponents.

Coplain said, “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.”

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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…

— Shayne Coplan 🦅 (@shayne_coplan) November 13, 2024

Coplan further said that Polymarket has been, and will forever be, committed to being non-partisan.

“We are deeply committed to being non-partisan, and today is no different, but the incumbts 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,” said Coplain.