Major hedge funds ban Polymarket trading
Point72 and Balyasny have told employees they can’t trade on prediction‑market platforms like Polymarket for personal accounts, tightening compliance around staff participation in on‑chain markets. That reflects rising institutional sensitivity to employee trading risk where personal markets intersect with professional research. (x.com)
An anonymous Polymarket account placed roughly $32,000 in wagers on Nicolás Maduro’s ouster and realized about $436,759 when U.S. forces captured him, a timing anomaly that intensified insider‑trading scrutiny of event markets. (decrypt.co)) Representative Ritchie Torres filed the Public Integrity in Financial Prediction Markets Act of 2026 to bar federal elected officials, appointees and staff from trading prediction‑market contracts tied to government actions; the filing lists roughly 30 House co‑sponsors. (ritchietorres.house.gov)) The Wall Street Journal reported that Kalshi and Polymarket have held preliminary fundraising talks targeting about $20 billion valuations apiece, with combined monthly trading volume near $18.3 billion in February and Kalshi surpassing a $1 billion annualized revenue run‑rate—growth that has amplified counterparty and reputational risk for institutional employers. (theblock.co)) The executive branch has weighed in: federal officials publicly backed Kalshi and Polymarket in a legal dispute over state bans, drawing the platforms into a high‑profile regulatory fight that firms cite when tightening employee trading rules. (pbs.org) Bloomberg characterized recent policy changes at major hedge funds as part of Wall Street’s broader effort to grapple with fast‑growing on‑chain and regulated event markets amid heightened legal uncertainty. (bloomberg.com)) Industry trackers list roughly 30 active lawsuits and regulatory actions against prediction‑market operators as of mid‑March 2026, while Polymarket has faced geo‑blocking and formal bans in several jurisdictions—facts that compliance teams cite when expanding personal‑trading blacklists. (actionnetwork.com))
