Online betting site Polymarket came under fire Friday for allowing users to gamble on the date that U.S. pilots downed over Iran would be rescued or recovered — and, faced with criticism, pulled this option from their platform.
The bet, which stated "U.S. confirms pilots rescued by...?" and allowed people to buy yes or no for April 3 or 4, was flagged by Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA), himself a Marine combat veteran.
"There is an ongoing search and rescue operation for a missing American service member whose plane was shot down over Iran," wrote Moulton on X. "Their safety is unknown. They could be your neighbor, a friend, a family member. And people are betting on whether or not they'll be saved. This is DISGUSTING. Quick reminder too that @DonaldJTrumpJr is an investor in this dystopian death market and may have access to intelligence that isn't public yet."
In response to the post, Polymarket's account replied, "We took this market down immediately as it does not meet our integrity standards. It should not have been posted, and we are investigating how this slipped through our internal safeguards."
This explanation, however, did not satisfy Moulton.
"Your integrity standards are severely lacking, @Polymarket. Users are still able to place bets on the lives of our troops — here's what your Iran tab looks like right now." He posted a screenshot of Polymarket's platform, which was full of bets like "U.S. forces enter Iran by...?" "US x Iran ceasefire by...?" and "Trump announces end of military operations against Iran by...?"
Meanwhile, Business Insider's Jack Newsham pointed out, "How does it violate your integrity standards? I'm looking at the 'Market Integrity' page, and I checked the TOS, and I don't see which prohibition is relevant here."
Polymarket, along with competing "prediction markets" like Kalshi, have been accused of running illegal gambling operations that skirt state laws, by pretending their gambling products are actually commodities exchanges.
Disclaimer: The author of this article works for a gaming company.