Google Engineer Accused of Polymarket Insider Trading Says He Was Just Gambling
A Google engineer facing insider trading charges claims his Polymarket wagers were international gambling, not regulated financial instruments.Summary
Michele Spagnuolo, a Google engineer placed on leave, faces federal charges for allegedly making over $1.2 million in profits on Polymarket using internal information. His legal team has filed a motion to dismiss the charges, arguing that the wagers were not financial instruments subject to the Commodities Exchange Act but rather international betting. Spagnuolo, who used the alias "AlphaRaccoon," correctly wagered that the singer D4vd would be Google's most-searched person in 2025. His defense claims the US lacks jurisdiction because he is a non-US citizen wagering on a platform administered by a Panama-based entity. The case highlights a broader legal battle over whether prediction markets should be classified as "swaps" or gambling, with Spagnuolo's team asserting that such a classification would lead to absurd results.
(Source：Wired)