Key Takeaways
- • Bloomberg reported on Oct. 20, 2026 that Founders Fund found during its 2025 due diligence that Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan had used company funds for private jet flights, apartment rent and personal expenses.
- • Coplan reimbursed the funds before Founders Fund invested at a $1.2 billion valuation; Polymarket was not generating revenue at the time, per Bloomberg.
- • Intercontinental Exchange and Founders Fund have recommended that Coplan hire a chief operating officer, a step he has not yet taken, according to people familiar with the matter.
- • Polymarket is raising funds at a $21 billion valuation in a round led by 1789 Capital, more than double ICE's 2025 valuation of $9 billion but about half what Kalshi is seeking.
- • Polymarket trails Kalshi sharply in trading activity, with Kalshi handling more than $4 billion a day on Oct. 17 and Oct. 18, and faces a new CFTC investigation.
Summary
When Founders Fund weighed an investment in Polymarket in 2025, it found that CEO Shayne Coplan had been using company money for private jet flights, his apartment rent and personal expenses, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 20. According to the report, the Peter Thiel-led firm required Coplan to repay the money and follow through on changes already underway to strengthen the company's financial controls before investing. Coplan reimbursed the funds, and Founders Fund invested at a valuation of $1.2 billion. Polymarket was not generating revenue at the time, according to Bloomberg.
A Polymarket spokesperson said the flights were for business purposes and that Coplan proactively disclosed the expenses to investors. The spokesperson said Coplan founded the company at 21 during the pandemic, went without a salary for a long period and lived in a bedroom in the office, and that when the business grew in 2024 he accounted for the spending and made a good-faith repayment of less than a software engineer's annual salary. Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly, which invested in earlier Polymarket rounds, told Bloomberg that the undisclosed amount was immaterial and that there was no bad intent. Founders Fund declined to comment.
Bloomberg reported that the episode reflects broader investor pressure on the 28-year-old founder to change how he runs the company. Senior staff at Intercontinental Exchange, the NYSE parent and a major Polymarket stakeholder, have privately described difficulties mentoring Coplan, and both ICE and Founders Fund have recommended he hire a chief operating officer. ICE declined to comment beyond pointing to an August interview in which CEO Jeffrey Sprecher said, "We have a great relationship."
Some changes are in place. Coplan hired his first chief financial officer in September, after Founders Fund and ICE required a head of finance as part of their 2025 investments. New hires include a former FBI analyst overseeing investigations and executives from Goldman Sachs, DoorDash and Robinhood. Alex Spiro, Elon Musk's personal lawyer, has joined the four-person board and is helping with day-to-day operations, including hiring. Investors also pushed Coplan to take a salary so he does not need the company to cover his expenses, and Founders Fund structured its investment so he cannot be fired without his consent, according to the report. Coplan said in a statement to Bloomberg, "There were real growing pains," and that hiring an excellent executive team is his top goal for 2026.
The pressure comes as Polymarket has fallen well behind rival Kalshi in trading activity. Bloomberg also cited technical outages, lawsuits, political backlash and a new Commodity Futures Trading Commission investigation. Polymarket is now raising money at a $21 billion valuation in a round led by 1789 Capital, where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, according to Bloomberg. Founders Fund is participating, per a person familiar with the situation. The National Futures Association separately threatened to drop Polymarket as a client over record keeping; the company has fixed the problem, and the NFA confirmed Polymarket remains a client.
A Polymarket spokesperson said the flights were for business purposes and that Coplan proactively disclosed the expenses to investors. The spokesperson said Coplan founded the company at 21 during the pandemic, went without a salary for a long period and lived in a bedroom in the office, and that when the business grew in 2024 he accounted for the spending and made a good-faith repayment of less than a software engineer's annual salary. Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly, which invested in earlier Polymarket rounds, told Bloomberg that the undisclosed amount was immaterial and that there was no bad intent. Founders Fund declined to comment.
Bloomberg reported that the episode reflects broader investor pressure on the 28-year-old founder to change how he runs the company. Senior staff at Intercontinental Exchange, the NYSE parent and a major Polymarket stakeholder, have privately described difficulties mentoring Coplan, and both ICE and Founders Fund have recommended he hire a chief operating officer. ICE declined to comment beyond pointing to an August interview in which CEO Jeffrey Sprecher said, "We have a great relationship."
Some changes are in place. Coplan hired his first chief financial officer in September, after Founders Fund and ICE required a head of finance as part of their 2025 investments. New hires include a former FBI analyst overseeing investigations and executives from Goldman Sachs, DoorDash and Robinhood. Alex Spiro, Elon Musk's personal lawyer, has joined the four-person board and is helping with day-to-day operations, including hiring. Investors also pushed Coplan to take a salary so he does not need the company to cover his expenses, and Founders Fund structured its investment so he cannot be fired without his consent, according to the report. Coplan said in a statement to Bloomberg, "There were real growing pains," and that hiring an excellent executive team is his top goal for 2026.
The pressure comes as Polymarket has fallen well behind rival Kalshi in trading activity. Bloomberg also cited technical outages, lawsuits, political backlash and a new Commodity Futures Trading Commission investigation. Polymarket is now raising money at a $21 billion valuation in a round led by 1789 Capital, where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, according to Bloomberg. Founders Fund is participating, per a person familiar with the situation. The National Futures Association separately threatened to drop Polymarket as a client over record keeping; the company has fixed the problem, and the NFA confirmed Polymarket remains a client.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.