Polymarket Hit by Major Fraud Scheme

Prediction-market giant Polymarket was reportedly hit by a sprawling fraud scheme that saw criminals attempt to funnel at least $10 million through its U.S. platform.

Alex Dovbnya · 20 Sep 2026 · 4 min read

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Alex Dovbnya

Sun, 20/09/2026 – 14:59

Prediction-market giant Polymarket was reportedly hit by a sprawling fraud scheme that saw criminals attempt to funnel at least $10 million through its U.S. platform.

Polymarket Hit by Major Fraud Scheme

Cover image via U.Today

Growth versus fraud controls
Another security incident
Bolstering executive team

Prediction-market giant Polymarket was reportedly targeted by a large-scale fraud operation earlier this year.

Criminals attempted to move at least $10 million through its U.S. platform with the help of stolen debit cards.

The scheme became known in February, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.

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Fraudsters attached stolen cards to thousands of Polymarket US accounts and tried converting them into wagers.

At the peak of the fraud, payment processor Checkout.com was reportedly rejecting more than 80% of the Polymarket deposits it handled because they appeared to be suspicious.

Growth versus fraud controls

According to the WSJ, employees raised concerns internally.

Current and former workers told the newspaper that CEO Shayne Coplan continued to emphasize growth despite warnings from compliance staff.

Another security incident

In June, Polymarket confirmed that hackers had stolen funds from some users after a compromise involving a third-party vendor. Malicious code was injected into the company’s website for certain users, according to the company.

The Journal also reported a separate incident in July involving nearly 500 users. An engineering vulnerability allegedly allowed attackers with stolen personal information to access existing accounts.

Bolstering executive team

In the meantime, Polymarket has pursued further expansion in the United States.

Earlier this month, the company appointed veteran executive Warren Jenson as its first chief financial officer. Jenson previously served as CFO at Amazon, Electronic Arts, Delta Air Lines and Nielsen.

Polymarket has also brought in former Uber executive Travis VanderZanden as chief growth officer.

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