CFTC charges Google employee with insider trading on Polymarket

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed a civil complaint in a New York federal court against Michele Spagnuolo, a software engineer at Google residing in Switzerland. The complaint alleges Spagnuolo used confidential, non-public information about Google's 2025 Year in Search results to trade on prediction market platform Polymarket.

The CFTC alleges Spagnuolo breached his duty of trust to Google by using the sensitive information for personal gain. From at least October to December 2025, he traded on at least 23 search-list contracts on Polymarket.com, including predictions for the "#1 Searched Person" and "Top 5 Most Searched People," with near-perfect accuracy.

Using the handle "AlphaRaccoon," Spagnuolo is alleged to have generated approximately $1.2 million in profits from his trading. The CFTC is seeking restitution, disgorgement, civil penalties, trading bans, and a permanent injunction against further violations.

Separately, on May 27, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced a related criminal complaint against Spagnuolo, unsealed in the same court.