Google Engineer Faces Insider Trading Charges After Using Company Secrets To Profit More Than $1 Million – Benzinga

Michele Spagnuolo, an Italian citizen residing in Switzerland, was charged with commodities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, according to a DOJ press release.
The complaint stated that Spagnuolo had access to Google’s internal software tool, which provided him with confidential company information.
“The FBI remains committed to hunting down fraudsters who betray their employer for personal financial gains,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle, Jr.
Google has put Spagnuolo on leave and is taking appropriate action, a company spokesperson told Benzinga. The spokesperson added that using confidential information to place bets is a serious breach of the company’s policies.
Polymarket said its “market integrity infrastructure” flagged Spagnuolo’s suspicious trades, leading to his arrest by the authorities.
The case lands amid intense scrutiny over insider trading on prediction markets.
Arthur Hayes, Chief Investment Officer at Maelstrom Fund, meanwhile, backed insider trading in prediction markets, saying people will make better calls when information flows freely.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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The Justice Department charged a software engineer at Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL)-owned Google on Wednesday with allegedly profiting over $1 million on Polymarket by misusing confidential information.
He created an account on Polymarket, a Polygon (CRYPTO: POL)-based prediction market, with a pseudonym "AlphaRaccoon,” and placed several bets related to Google’s internal information. When the information was finally made public, he profited roughly $1.2 million on all his wagers.
President Donald Trump backed the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s exclusive authority over prediction markets on Tuesday, while also declaring the U.S.
A U.S. soldier was charged last month for allegedly using classified information to profit on a Polymarket bet linked to Venezuela’s ousted leader, Nicolás Maduro. The soldier had a role in planning and executing the military operation, which gave him access to “sensitive” information.
Congressional opposition has intensified. Last month, the Senate unanimously passed a resolution banning Senators, Officers, and staff from participating in prediction markets. Bipartisan legislation has also been introduced to extend the ban across the entire executive branch.
Polymarket gives Elon Musk a 94% chance of becoming the world's first trillionaire this year. His new SpaceX pay package could push him toward $2 trillion.

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