All posts tagged: trading

Trump pardons former US Congress member accused of insider trading | Donald Trump News

Trump pardons former US Congress member accused of insider trading | Donald Trump News

Published by Sam Flores

Republican Stephen Buyer was convicted and sentenced to 22 months in prison, though he has maintained his innocence. Published On 6 Jun 20266 Jun 2026 United States President Donald Trump has issued a pardon to Stephen Buyer, a former Republican congressman from Indiana who served nearly two years in prison for making illegal stock trades based on inside information after he left office. The pardon was dated Thursday and released by the White House late Friday night. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Buyer was sentenced to 22 months in prison in 2023 for trades made while working as a consultant and lobbyist. He was ordered to forfeit more than $350,000, representing the amount of the illegal gains, as well as pay a $10,000 fine. He was released in 2025. The Supreme Court in May rejected Buyer’s appeal without comment or noted dissent. In granting “a full, complete, and unconditional pardon” to Buyer, Trump cited the Republican’s work, both as a judge advocate general in the US Army and as a politician in …

George Santos rejects trading claims amid expanding prediction market concerns

George Santos rejects trading claims amid expanding prediction market concerns

Published by skeptic

Former Rep. George Santos is disputing allegations that he improperly benefited from prediction-market trading as federal authorities reportedly examine activity connected to his account on Kalshi. In a June 3 post on X, Santos said he learned through media reports that the Department of Justice could be looking into the matter. He said his attorneys had already contacted federal officials for clarification and that he would cooperate with any requests for information. To the 100’s of reporters calling me through the night. Stop! My legal team and I were made aware by a report from NPR yesterday that the DOJ might be looking into me. So now my legal team is in contact with the DOJ to see what is going on. I will comment further when… — George Santos (@Georgesantos) June 3, 2026 “The bases of the accusation is preposterous and I look forward to supplying any information asked of me to any agency that inquires,” Santos wrote. Reports from NPR, the Associated Press and other outlets say investigators are reviewing trades tied to …

DOJ is investigating George Santos for insider trading on Kalshi : NPR

DOJ is investigating George Santos for insider trading on Kalshi : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Former New York congressman George Santos is being investigated by federal regulators over his trading activity on the prediction market site Kalshi. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images In February, four months after being released from federal prison, former Republican congressman George Santos took to social media to express his enthusiasm about attending President Trump’s upcoming State of the Union address. “I’m going to be there for the State of Union in the gallery, guys,” Santos said in a video he posted to X a day before the president’s remarks. At the time, traders on the prediction market site Kalshi were placing millions of dollars worth of bets on who would attend. Santos’ video confirming his presence sent odds soaring. But he didn’t show up. “Watching SOTU from an airport tv was not part of the plan! FML,” Santos wrote on X, using slang for a more coarse way of saying, “screw my life.” He posted the message as Trump was speaking, making those same odds in the Kalshi …

Regulators accuse Google engineer of profiting through Polymarket insider trading scheme

Regulators accuse Google engineer of profiting through Polymarket insider trading scheme

Published by skeptic

Federal regulators say a Google software engineer secretly used internal company information to place highly successful bets on Polymarket contracts tied to Google’s annual Year in Search rankings. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said Wednesday (May 27) that it filed a civil complaint in federal court in Manhattan against Michele Spagnuolo, a Swiss resident who worked at Google during the period covered in the case. According to the agency, Spagnuolo allegedly accessed confidential search ranking information before Google publicly released its 2025 Year in Search list and then used that information to trade prediction-market contracts. .@CFTC Charges Google Employee with Insider Trading in Search Result-Related Event Contracts: https://t.co/BmBrUNhSlK — CFTC (@CFTC) May 28, 2026 The complaint says Spagnuolo “acquired sensitive nonpublic information concerning the results of Google’s official Year in Search list for 2025” through his work at Google. Regulators said he was obligated to keep that information confidential and avoid using it for personal gain. Investigators claim he traded on at least 23 contracts connected to Google search trends between October and December …

Google employee charged with insider trading over Polymarket bets | Crime News

Google employee charged with insider trading over Polymarket bets | Crime News

Published by Sam Flores

Michele Spagnuolo allegedly used insider information to profit from bets on people on Google’s most-searched list. Published On 28 May 202628 May 2026 A Google software engineer has been charged with fraud by US authorities after allegedly using insider information to win more than $1.2m in bets on the prediction market platform Polymarket. Michele Spagnuolo, an Italian citizen residing in Switzerland, is accused of using confidential information to wager on the results of Google’s annual most-searched list, according to a criminal complaint unsealed on Wednesday. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list US prosecutors accuse Spagnuolo of using an account named “AlphaRaccoon” to make trades on various markets linked to the results of Google’s 2025 Year in Search. The total sum of the bets was approximately $2.75m, according to the complaint, filed in federal court in New York. Among the bets, Spagnuolo successfully predicted that indie pop musician d4vd would top the list for the most-searched for person last year, hours after accessing confidential data at Google, according to prosecutors. Spagnuolo, 36, faces charges …

Google engineer charged with insider trading after making .2M on Polymarket

Google engineer charged with insider trading after making $1.2M on Polymarket

Published by skeptic

The U.S. Justice Department charged Google software engineer Michele Spagnuolo with insider trading, alleging the employee made $1.2 million trading on Polymarket based on confidential business information. Spagnuolo, who used the name “AlphaRaccoon” on Polymarket, has worked at Google for over 12 years, according to information on LinkedIn. “As alleged, Spagnuolo violated the duties he owed to his employer and used Google’s confidential business information to make more than $1.2 million in trading profits on Polymarket,” Jay Clayton, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a press release. “Insider trading compromises the integrity of our markets, and the American people want this greed-driven conduct investigated and prosecuted.” Prediction markets like Polymarket, Kalshi, and others allow users to bet on pretty much anything. Insider trading is not allowed on these platforms because it’s illegal, but some users still commit the offense. The Justice Department recently charged a U.S. Army soldier for allegedly using his insider knowledge of the U.S. military operation to capture Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro to make $400,000 …

Google Security Engineer Arrested in Million-Dollar Polymarket Trading Scheme

Google Security Engineer Arrested in Million-Dollar Polymarket Trading Scheme

Published by skeptic

A Google security engineer has been charged with crimes stemming from allegedly placing trades on Polymarket using confidential internal information from the tech giant. Michele Spagnuolo, a 36-year-old Italian citizen, was arrested this morning in New York, as first reported by ABC News. Spagnuolo is charged with one count each of commodities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. He has worked at Google since 2014 and was based out of the company’s Zurich, Switzerland offices. According to the complaint, Spagnuolo placed trades on Polymarket from around October 2025 to December 2025 using internal Google data. In one instance, he netted $1.2 million trading on who Google’s most-searched person of the year would be in 2025, correctly predicting that the winner would be D4vd, a once obscure singer who became the subject of intense public scrutiny after he was suspected of murder. (D4vd was ultimately charged in the case in April.) “Unlike the counterparties to his trades, Spagnuolo knew the outcome of these wagers before the trading public did because he had accessed Google’s confidential, commercially …

Democrats Feud Over Stock Trading as They Sharpen Anti-Corruption Case Against Trump

Democrats Feud Over Stock Trading as They Sharpen Anti-Corruption Case Against Trump

Published by Sam Flores

DALLAS (AP) — After three terms in the U.S. House and two unsuccessful campaigns for the U.S. Senate, Colin Allred said he’s heard plenty about voters’ suspicions that politicians are just trying to make a buck in Washington. “’What about the stock trading in Congress? What about people getting rich in Congress?’” Allred said they ask him regularly. “And I have to say to them, you’re absolutely right about that, too. We need to be better.” He’s challenging Rep. Julie Johnson in the Democratic runoff for a Dallas-area House seat on Tuesday, and he’s one of several candidates trying to harness populist anger over congressional stock trading. Allred has denounced Johnson for trades involving companies like Palantir, a data analytics firm with ties to President Donald Trump’s administration. Johnson said her trades were handled by a financial manager, and she accused Allred of being “only out for himself.” She pointed to financial disclosures that showed Allred’s wealth nearly doubling during his own time in Congress, although Allred said his assets were in a blind trust …

Comer launches Congress probe into insider trading on Kalshi, Polymarket

Comer launches Congress probe into insider trading on Kalshi, Polymarket

Published by Sam Flores

Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, announced Friday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that he is seeking information from the CEOs of Kalshi and Polymarket on their efforts to prevent insider trading on their platforms. Comer’s probe is the latest in a series of congressional attempts to rein-in the platforms. “Internal records held by prediction market platforms are the only means by which bad actors can be identified and to determine whether platforms are meeting their legal obligations,” Comer wrote in a letter sent Friday to Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan and seen by CNBC. A similar letter, also seen by CNBC, was sent Friday to Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour. “Therefore, the Committee requests documents and information to better understand how Polymarket implements identity verification for domestic and international account holders, enforces geographic restrictions, and detects anomalous trading activity to prevent insider trading across its global platform,” Comer’s letter continues. Polymarket did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Elisabeth Diana, Kalshi’s head of communications, said in a statement …

The Download: Musk v. Altman week 3, and Trump’s tech trading

The Download: Musk v. Altman week 3, and Trump’s tech trading

Published by skeptic

3 Chinese AI groups have pulled ahead of US rivals in video generationByteDance and Kuaishou’s models lead in realism and scale. (FT $)+ AI is fueling China’s short-drama boom. (MIT Technology Review)+ While its AI labs are betting big on open source. (MIT Technology Review) 4 Iran says it will charge Big Tech for using undersea internet cablesThe cables beneath the Strait of Hormuz carry vast digital traffic. (CNN)+ Tech bosses met at Uber HQ on Saturday to discuss Iran’s future. (404 Media) 5 Samsung has a “last chance” to stop a massive strike over AIOver 45,000 employees could walk out for 18 days this week. (CNBC) + They want a bigger share of the AI boom. (FT $)+ Samsung and its largest labor union will resume talks on Tuesday. (Reuters $) 6 Old oil and gas wells could become a new source of clean energyUS states plan to convert them into geothermal energy assets. (Wired $)+ A balcony solar boom is coming to the US. (MIT Technology Review) 7 The ChatGPT era has triggered a …