How a Polymarket Trader Made $1M on Google Search Bets: And Why It’s Raising Flags

• Polymarket trader earned nearly $1 million through Google search trend predictions
• Wallet achieved 22-for-23 success rate raising insider trading suspicions online
• Platform processed $3.7 billion volume in November as US relaunch continues

A Polymarket trader has generated nearly $1 million in profits through suspiciously accurate bets on Google’s 2025 Year in Search rankings. The wallet address “0xafEe,” previously known as “AlphaRaccoon,” correctly predicted nearly every outcome in Google search trend markets.

The trader purchased “Yes” shares on d4vd, a 20-year-old singer given just a 0.2% probability of becoming the most searched person of 2025. This wager converted $10,647 into approximately $200,000. Additional profits came from betting “No” on favorites including Pope Leo XIV, Bianca Censori, and Donald Trump.

Engineer Exposes Unusual Winning Pattern

Meta engineer Jeong Haeju exposed the situation on X, stating the trader achieved a 22-for-23 success rate on Google search predictions. Public blockchain data shows the wallet deposited $3 million into Polymarket last Friday before immediately placing large bets.

By accurately forecasting the precise release date of Gemini 3.0 Flash, the same account previously won nearly $150,000. Haeju stated that the pattern indicates the trader is a Google insider using Polymarket for quick profits rather than a lucky streak.

However, no confirmation exists that the trader actually works at Google. The allegations remain community speculation based on the unusual winning record across multiple Google-related markets.

The incident has divided the cryptocurrency community on whether insider trading serves as a feature or flaw of prediction markets. Some argue that prediction markets specifically enable insider trading by creating financial incentives to share privileged information with the market.

X user WiiMee stated that the reason for prediction markets to exist is insider trading. The user noted that while insider trading faces prohibition in stocks, prediction markets endorse the practice by design.

The controversy arrives as Polymarket officially relaunched in the United States this week following CFTC approval. The platform announced Wednesday that its iOS app is rolling out to waitlisted users, beginning with sports markets.

Polymarket processed over $3.7 billion in trading volume during November 2025. The platform gained momentum when Intercontinental Exchange, parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, invested up to $2 billion in October. This valued Polymarket at approximately $9 billion.