Polymarket CEO Brands Rivals a 'Scam' Amid Nobel Probe
Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan attacked regulated sportsbooks like FanDuel and DraftKings as a "scam" during a recent Axios BFD summit, a bold move for a company whose platform is under scrutiny for suspicious betting activity.
The attack comes just a month after Norwegian authorities began investigating a potential information leak related to the Nobel Peace Prize. On Polymarket, several accounts raked in approximately $90,000 by placing large, last-minute bets on the winner, raising insider trading alarms. One account was reportedly created the same day the bets were placed.
Coplan is targeting the "patchwork, state-based system" of licensed betting while his own firm operates in a regulatory grey area.
"You're trading against the house, they can change the price on you, and they can ban you if you make money. That's a scam," Coplan stated at the event.
This aggressive posture follows a period of rapid growth for Polymarket, which is reportedly closing a funding round led by Peter Thiel's Founders Fund that pushes its valuation to $1 billion. The platform gained notoriety for accurately predicting the 2024 U.S. election results when many traditional polls did not.
Despite the controversy, Coplan remains defiant, arguing that prediction markets are a fairer alternative to the incumbent "duopoly" of DraftKings and FanDuel. The firm is preparing to re-enter the U.S. market under CFTC regulation.
