A cryptocurrency project has disclosed that its own team bet on the outcome of its fundraising round on the prediction market platform Polymarket. The project, P2P.me, confirmed an on-chain account labeled “P2P Team” was used to bet on whether it would reach its $6 million target. The activity, which occurred before the raise concluded, comes just days after Polymarket updated its rules to explicitly prohibit trading by individuals who can influence an event’s outcome.
The project P2P.me publicly confirmed that an account labeled “P2P Team” was controlled by its team. This account was used to bet on whether the project would reach its $6 million fundraising target on Polymarket.
The bets were placed roughly 10 days before the fundraising round concluded, when the outcome was not yet finalized. The project stated the capital used came from its foundation’s treasury and that all proceeds would be returned.
This disclosure comes just days after Polymarket updated its rules on March 23, introducing stricter definitions around insider trading. Among the changes, the platform explicitly prohibited trading by individuals who hold positions of influence over an outcome.
On-chain data from the account indicates the activity was not purely symbolic. The account recorded roughly $149,000 in trading volume and around $23,000 in profit and loss, with individual positions generating gains over $11,000.
P2P acknowledged that failing to disclose the activity at the time was a mistake. The team notes that trading on outcomes that a team can influence may erode trust, even if the result is not predetermined.
The case underscores a broader challenge facing decentralized prediction markets. Polymarket’s model relies on open participation, but the presence of informed actors can complicate enforcement.
As platforms move to formalize rules around insider activity, real-world cases like this may shape how those standards are interpreted and applied.
