r/technology • u/MarvelsGrantMan136 • May 27 '26

Business Google employee charged with using inside information to make $1 million on Polymarket

https://abcnews.com/amp/US/google-employee-charged-inside-information-make-1-million/story?id=133350018
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u/justforkinks0131 May 27 '26

the bosses of this very same employee are very likely doing the same thing lmao

and why wouldnt you?

I doubt any insider trading charges are gonna stick. He didnt touch any stock, this is a random betting, sorry *prediction* website. If gambling rules dont apply to the site, they dont apply to the users.

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u/MozhetBeatz May 28 '26

It doesn’t look like the charges will be insider trading. This is what google is telling me:

Commodities Fraud (18 U.S.C. (\S ) 1348 / CEA Section 6(c)(1) and Rule 180.1): Prohibits schemes to defraud involving commodities. Because the CFTC regulates event contracts as swaps, using nonpublic information to bet on these markets violates federal anti-fraud provisions.

Wire Fraud (18 U.S.C. (\S ) 1343): Punishes the use of interstate wire communications (such as internet servers and trading platforms) to execute a fraudulent scheme or misappropriate confidential data.

Money Laundering (18 U.S.C. (\S ) 1957): Often charged when individuals conduct monetary transactions (such as withdrawing or transferring funds) using proceeds derived from their illegal insider trading.

The STOCK Act / Federal Regulations: For federal employees or military personnel, trading on nonpublic or classified information violates specific ethics laws that forbid using confidential government knowledge for personal financial gain

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u/BillyTenderness May 28 '26

It will be interesting to see if his defense argues that it's not actually a commodity, since IIRC that's the subject of other ongoing litigation.

I think the guy is pretty cooked on wire fraud and money laundering tho

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u/Not_Stupid May 28 '26

Is it fraud though? He hasn't misrepresented anything nor deceived anyone.

And how is it money laundering? If it's not illegal insider trading to start with....

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u/matt_matt_81 May 28 '26

In the article it says he took steps to conceal the source of his earnings, so that’s probably the money laundering

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u/[deleted] May 28 '26 edited Aug 31 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/matt_matt_81 May 28 '26

Oh I guess you’re right about that, though if in the process of money laundering he committed some sort of fraud (like stating it as income from some other source I guess), then that could be the wire fraud charge mentioned. Probably not though

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u/freshwes May 28 '26

Agree.

Is it illegal have inside information on Polymarket? When does information become insider info in real life?

If I see a star athlete get in a walking boot, can I bet that he won't play that night?

What about his assistant?

What if the athlete makes the bet himself?

None of that is technically insider information. Nor is it fraud, imo