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Maduro's capture provided a bookmaker with a $400 profit

Nicolas maduro

Prediction markets allow people to bet on everything from a basketball game to the outcome of a presidential election and, most recently, the fall of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the agency writes. "AP". 

The latter has brought attention to prediction markets. Last week, an anonymous trader pocketed over $400 after betting that Maduro would soon leave office. 

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Most of the bids the trader placed on the Polymarket platform were made just hours before US President Donald Trump abruptly announced the surprise move on the night of January 3 that led to Maduro’s capture. This raised suspicions of inside information, given the timing of the bets. Others argued that the risk of capture was too great and that earlier speculation about Maduro’s future may have led to such transactions. 

Polymarket has not commented on this event. 

The use of prediction markets has grown significantly in recent years, opening the door for people to bet their money on the probability of a growing list of future events.