Google employee charged with insider trading over Polymarket bets

A software engineer employed by Google has been charged with fraud in the United States after reportedly using insider information to secure over $1.2 million in bets on the prediction market platform Polymarket.

Michele Spagnuolo, a 36-year-old Italian national living in Switzerland, allegedly leveraged confidential data pertaining to Google's annual most-searched list, as stated in a criminal complaint unsealed on Wednesday.

Prosecutors allege that Spagnuolo operated an account dubbed "AlphaRaccoon" to execute trades on various markets associated with the results of Google's 2025 Year in Search.

The total volume of bets placed is estimated at around $2.75 million, as detailed in the federal court filing in New York.

Significantly, Spagnuolo accurately predicted that indie pop artist d4vd would be the most-searched individual last year, making this prediction mere hours after accessing sensitive internal data from Google, according to the allegations presented by prosecutors.

Facing charges including commodities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, Spagnuolo's situation highlights serious legal implications regarding the misuse of corporate information.

"Today's charges reinforce a decades-old message: corporate insiders cannot use confidential business information to turn a profit in our markets," remarked US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, in an official statement.

"Insider trading compromises the integrity of our markets, and the American people want this greed-driven conduct investigated and prosecuted," Clayton emphasized.

Bets on Maduro's capture

In response to these allegations, Google confirmed its collaboration with law enforcement agencies and acknowledged that utilizing confidential information for betting purposes constitutes a significant violation of company policy.

According to a Google spokesperson, Spagnuolo has been placed on administrative leave pending further investigation.

A representative from Polymarket stated that the company has been actively cooperating with the US Attorney's Office throughout the investigation, noting that it is the only prediction market platform whose collaborative efforts have resulted in insider trading charges in the United States.

"We are committed to maintaining accurate, fair, and transparent markets as well as enforcing our rules and working with our regulators and law enforcement," the Polymarket spokesperson added.

This incident follows a recent case in which a US soldier faced charges for allegedly betting on Polymarket using classified military information regarding the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Prosecutors claim that Gannon Ken Van Dyke, aged 38, profited over $400,000 through these illicit bets connected to the US operation against Maduro.