The White House warned its employees not to abuse their official position to participate in futures trading, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources.
According to the publication, on March 23, minutes before US President Donald Trump announced a halt to strikes on Iranian power plants and infrastructure, oil futures deals worth over $ 760 million were concluded. The next day, the White House Office of Management and Budget sent an email warning employees not to abuse their official positions to trade in futures markets.
“President Trump has made it clear that while he seeks a strong and profitable stock market for all, members of Congress and other government officials should be prohibited from using nonpublic information for financial purposes,“ the newspaper quoted White House spokesman Davis Ingle as saying.
According to Dow Jones Market data provided to the Wall Street Journal, three players on the Polymarket platform won more than $600,000 by correctly predicting the timing of the ceasefire with Iran. However, the newspaper notes that there is no evidence that US officials used this information to profit from prediction markets.
Axios previously reported that US congressmen are seeking to ban betting on the outcomes of events of socio-political significance, including elections, government decisions, military actions and sporting events, amid suspicious activity by some users.