I’ve known Polymarket’s CEO for years – this is why the FBI raid is a scam

FBI raid on the founder of online betting site polymarket This shows that the lawfare era under the Biden-Harris administration did not end after Donald Trump’s decisive victory on Election Day.

Instead, the “Deep State” chose a quarry who was less famous, less powerful, less wealthy, less loud, and less loud than the elected president. And he might be the worst dressed person I’ve ever met.

But Polymarket boss Shiny Coplan appears to be the favorite punching bag for all those angry that his technology has predicted the election with astonishing accuracy.

Their online betting market also predicted that President Joe Biden would exit the campaign at around the same time as network pundits were touting Fighting Joe’s better-than-ever fitness.

Coplan is known in New York startup circles as a privately gregarious but publicly shy tech purist who would sit behind his laptop for days at a time “jamming” on Polymarket code.

In my many years of knowing Coplan, I never heard him discuss politics with interest or enthusiasm. Starting any conversation about politics is a surefire way to get Coplan back in his iPhone to email with his small and dysfunctional engineering team.

Maybe it is harmful for him. The Democrats appear to have lost their tight grip on Big Tech by slapping the builders and enriching those who have mastered the art of lobbying and regulatory gymnastics. Do we want our young inventors to concentrate their precious time and limited capital here?

Considering that Polymarket or Coplan could be “brought down” by the FBI is a non-starter It played an important role in the elections And the huge number of important people who use it as an irreplaceable information resource. Even Elon Musk tweeted his support.

More importantly, betting on news or elections is not illegal. It’s completely legal in the United States, though PolyMarket itself is still taking seriously the years-long regulatory waltz it’s forced into overseas while less popular competitors rapidly claw their way to domestic approval. Are doing.

But that’s Lafair’s picture – picking a politically attractive target and then trying to sift through everything they can find to charge him with a crime.

However, the funny thing about Lawfare is that it is transforming the shy introverts and awkward people of our society into men who can speak up and fight for themselves.

What is lost in the FBI’s “raids for attention” approach is that Coplan and Polymarket are not heroes of the right because they take or present any partisan stance. They have garnered the support of millions of people as they seek a truly neutral alternative to the De Moines Register, or other crystal ball methods of measuring reality.

But here’s a prediction no one can make without the aid of technology: If forced into the PR spotlight, Coplan and Polymarket will rise to the occasion.

The countless people who know Coplan and who have invested in his big idea often wonder why he’s not the type of founder who wants to be famous. They have all the skills and opportunities to become a mainstay of compelling television or podcasts. His discipline and apolitical nature had held him back till now.

But if the FBI continues to be more biased than it aims to be, all bets may be off.

Brian Goldberg is an entrepreneur who owns Bustle Digital Group, which operates media properties that include Bustle, Nylon, W Magazine, and Gawker.