Polymarket Removes Iran Rescue Market After Moulton Condemns It as Disgusting

Polymarket removed a live prediction market tied to the rescue status of a missing U.S. airman after Rep. Seth Moulton condemned it as exploitative.

“The Polymarket platform sparked widespread controversy after allowing users to bet on the timing of the rescue of a crew member from an American aircraft shot down in Iran, before it later apologized and said it had deleted the market immediately”

An-Nahar

More than 63% of bettors wagered against a quick rescue confirmation.

An-Nahar

The second F-15E crew member was safely recovered by April 5.

Polymarket said the market should never have been opened and is investigating.

Moulton tweeted that people were betting on whether a service member would be saved while an active operation was in progress.

He noted there were still 219 active war bets on Polymarket.

Benzinga

Congressional Democrats have proposed legislation to ban contracts tied to elections, war, and government actions.

Moulton banned his staff from using prediction market platforms.

Prediction markets have faced increasing regulatory pressure and criticism over loose guardrails.

The debate about ethical boundaries in wagering on human lives intensified.

Polymarket acknowledged the market did not meet its integrity standards.

The second crew member was rescued less than 48 hours after the downing.