Trump mega-bet 'Whale' discovered: he is a mysterious French trader
He calls himself Theo and spoke to the Wall Street Journal: 'I just want to make money', not manipulate the election in favour of the Republican candidate
3' min read
3' min read
He is French, a Wall Street veteran and goes by the name Theo, but he is a stage name, or rather a betting name. And he has made some bets, the kind that burn: his are the multiple, colossal bets totalling more than 30 million dollars on Donald Trump's victory over Kamala Harris in the race for the White House, made through the forecasting marketplace Polymarket.
Revealing the sketch if not the exact identity and face of 'Theo' was the Wall Street Journal, which interviewed him via Zoom. 'My intention is simply to make money', not politics, he assured. Even if the origin of his funds remains obscure, so much so as to raise specters of election manipulation or at least of having generated, willy-nilly, momentum (and publicity) in favour of the Republican candidate's chances. Prediction markets have a history of mixed fortunes and remain relatively small, allowing a few resourceful individuals to easily influence them.
In the interview with the Journal 'Theo' emerges as a trader with experience in finance, who worked for several banks and lived in the US before returning home. The Journal itself had reported in recent days that four large bets on a Trump success on the platform of Polymarket, a company that is based in New York but is not open to bets by US citizens, appeared to be attributable to the same player, financed through the same cryptocurrency exchange.
A subsequent investigation by Polymarket's lawyers led the company to track down and contact the 'Whale'. The investigation concluded that 'this individual is taking directional positions based on his personal views regarding the election'. Theo then also contacted the Journal by email to tell his story.
The newspaper, in order to ascertain his credibility, first asked him to place a mini-bet via one of the four pro-Trump accounts in the spotlight: on a Taylor Swift pregnancy in 2025. That said, the bet came from the account christened Theo4. And an interview followed via zoom. Theo, reports the Journal, in the remote dialogue had a well-groomed beard and was wearing a grey jumper.
