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CEO, 26, once used bathroom as office: Viral throwback pic amid US election spotlight
Shayne Coplan founded betting platform Polymarket in 2020.
A New York-based entrepreneur took to X (formerly Twitter) to reveal the humble beginnings of his company in a makeshift bathroom office four years ago.
"2020, running out of money, solo founder, HQ in my makeshift bathroom office. little did I know Polymarket was going to change the world," said Shayne Coplan, founder and CEO of crypto betting site Polymarket which emerged as a significant played in the 2024 US election season, enabling users to place wagers on key election outcomes.
Coplan, 26, shared the photo of his tiny bathroom, which showed a laptop placed on a white laundry basket.
Take a look at the CEO's post:
Polymarket is a crypto-fueled online betting platform where people keep making wagers on events until the bet closes out.
The company counts Peter Thiel's Founders Fund and Ethereum cofounder Vitalik Buterin as investors. Thousands of people gambled on the US election on online betting platforms.
Online election betting sites exploded into view in the final weeks of the US presidential election due to the way Donald Trump's odds on so-called "prediction markets" sharply diverged from opinion polls, which had the race locked in a dead heat.
"Make no mistake, Polymarket single-handedly called the election before anything else. The global truth machine is here, powered by the people," Coplan said in another post on X.
Trump wins race to White House
Donald Trump, 78, recaptured the White House with a sweeping victory on Wednesday, defeating Kamala Harris, as tens of millions of Americans looked past his criminal charges and divisive rhetoric to vote for him.
Trump won the US election following a polarising campaign marked by two attempts on his life and Democrat Kamala Harris' late entry into the race following President Joe Biden's surprise withdrawal.
The Republican has roles in his administration to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the world's richest man and a prominent Trump donor, and former presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr.
Musk contributed at least $119 million to a pro-Trump spending group, giving him extraordinary influence to help his companies secure favorable government treatment.
