Coinbase Reportedly Receives CFTC Subpoena Related To Polymarket Months After Platform's CEO House Raid

Cryptocurrency exchange giant Coinbase has reportedly received a subpoena from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in relation to market prediction platform Polymarket, whose CEO Shayne Coplan's home was raided by the FBI in November.

The notice to customers was revealed by EthHub co-founder Eric Conner on X. As per the notice, Coinbase said it "has been served with a subpoena in the above-referenced matter seeking general customer information that includes information related to your account(s)."

The email notice had the following subject: CFTC Subpoena to Coinbase In The Matter Polymarket.

According to the email, Coinbase said customers don't need to do anything at this point, but it did inform customers that it "may be required to send information related to your account(s)" to the CFTC in response to the subpoena "unless Coinbase is formally served by the close of business on January 15, 2025, with a motion to quash or other legal filing that prevents Coinbase from sharing this information."

Coinbase did not deny or confirm the details on Conner's post. Instead, a spokesperson said in response to International Business Times' request for comment regarding the customer notice that the company deeply values its commitment to customer data privacy and it exercises utmost care in handling such information.

"When we receive requests for information from a government, each request is carefully reviewed by a team of trained experts using established procedures to determine its legal sufficiency. Where necessary, we will seek to narrow requests that are overly broad or vague in order to provide a more appropriately tailored response, and in some cases we object to producing any information at all (such as if the request is legally insufficient). However, in some cases we may be required by law to share necessary data lawfully sought after by the government," the spokesperson added.

Crypto Users Slam 'Dems Pivot'

Conner's revelation has started picking up attention across crypto communities. He said "Biden's CFTC" sent the subpoena as part of its "case against Polymarket."

Crypto users are not so pleased with the news, including one that said the Democratic Party "pivoted so hard, they did 360," referring to some of outgoing Vice President Kamala Harris's allies who said during her presidential campaign that Democrats were pivoting toward the industry.

Another called out the CFTC for its alleged "centralized scrutiny," accusing the regulator of hating on citizen empowerment through making use of platforms that warrant their freedom of transaction.

"This will be in the history books as one of the most asinine targeted attacks by an administration on a whole industry," said Wazz, a well-followed figure in the crypto space.

Polymarket's Woes Amid Political 'Intervention'

A few days after the 2024 U.S. elections, Coplan's home was raided by the FBI, and his electronics and phone were seized in the process. A source described the surprise raid at the time as "grand political theater at its worst." Coplan was not arrested.

Following the house raid, Coplan took to X to seemingly confirm the incident. He did not specifically mention anything about the raid or his electronics' seizure, but he did call out the incumbent administration's "last-ditch effort to go after companies they deem to be associated with political opponents."

Polymarket bettors who used their cryptocurrencies to bet on future events correctly predicted that incoming President Donald Trump will win the presidential race.

Before the elections, there were already concerns around Polymarket's prediction market platform. It previously settled with the CFTC for $1.4 million in a case where the platform was accused of violating derivatives laws.