Polymarket Paid 800+ People Via CMO’s Personal PayPal, Report Finds

TLDR:

• Polymarket CMO Matthew Modabber sent $2.5M via personal PayPal to 800+ recipients in 14 months.
• At least $350K went to influencers who posted about Polymarket 490+ times without disclosures.
• Former FTC official says paid endorsements require clear, conspicuous disclosure under agency rules.
• Polymarket spent $112M acquiring a licensed U.S. exchange as it moves toward re-entering the market.

Polymarket’s chief marketing officer, Matthew Modabber, used a personal PayPal account to send over $2.5 million to more than 800 recipients between January 2025 and February 2026. At least $350,000 of those funds went to content creators who promoted the prediction market platform on X.

A Politico investigation found that at least 20 influencers posted about Polymarket nearly 490 times without any paid-partnership disclosures, raising serious questions about transparency and regulatory compliance.

A Personal Account Funding a Corporate Campaign

Modabber’s PayPal account was registered under an email tied to a salad business he co-founded. That account served as the channel for what appears to be a large-scale influencer marketing operation.

Politico independently verified the identities of roughly two dozen content creators who received funds from that account.

Among those identified were conservative influencer Alex LoRusso, progressive commentator Brian Krassenstein, and Riley Gaines, a Fox News contributor.

Each received thousands of dollars, yet none clearly disclosed paid partnerships in their Polymarket posts during the review period.

PayPal’s own user agreement specifies that personal accounts are intended for personal, family, or household use. The company noted that accounts primarily used for commercial activity may be subject to closure or conversion requirements.

Polymarket acknowledged working with content creators but declined to answer questions about disclosure policies. A company spokesperson stated: “We routinely collaborate with a diverse range of independent organizations, partners and content creators spanning the political spectrum.”

The company did not address why a personal account was used or how the payments were reported for tax purposes.

Influencers Framed Betting Odds as Breaking News

The content produced by paid influencers consistently framed Polymarket’s odds as authoritative news updates. About one-third of the 490 identified X posts used language such as “BREAKING” or “NEW” to describe betting market movements.

One anonymous influencer told Politico that Polymarket drafted posts for them and directed which bets to promote on a time-sensitive basis. “They actually told us, ‘This one needs to get out now, this one needs to get out now,'” the source said, “as if we were cattle.”

The influencer, who has hundreds of thousands of followers on X, said they received thousands of dollars from Polymarket to post about the company since 2024.

Shane Ginsberg, who received at least $77,000 from Modabber, ran a social media marketing business called Street Poller.

His network of interviewers promoted Polymarket through man-on-the-street video content, sometimes without even mentioning the company by name — only wearing branded merchandise.

Far-right influencer Nick Shirley received at least $3,100 from Modabber. His posts wearing a Polymarket-branded hoodie appeared after payments began.

Progressive commentator Brian Krassenstein, who received more than $9,300, wrote on X: “It really is unbelievable how accurate Polymarket has been these last 9 months.” Neither post carried any paid-promotion disclaimer.

Regulatory Gaps Leave Disclosure Rules Unclear

The Federal Trade Commission requires social media influencers to disclose any material connection to brands they promote.

However, the FTC did not respond to Politico’s questions about whether those rules apply specifically to prediction market promotions.

Robin Moore, a former FTC deputy general counsel, told Politico the arrangement likely required disclosure. “As a general rule, if an endorsement is paid, the endorser needs to clearly and conspicuously disclose a material connection to the advertiser,” Moore said. He added that advertisers drafting posts for partners could themselves be held liable.

After Politico contacted LoRusso, a “paid partnership” label appeared on at least some of his Polymarket posts. Other posts on his account still carry no such disclosure.

Renée DiResta, a Georgetown professor who studies digital influence, noted: “People are not consciously thinking about whether an influencer is profiting every time they see a post.”

Conservative creator Elijah Schaffer, who received over $8,400, addressed his Polymarket relationship in a comment rather than in his posts.

He argued the arrangement was not technically an advertisement, writing: “I’m not paid for this post directly and they don’t force me to say anything so it’s technically not an ad. However I do clarify we work together.”

Polymarket’s Growth Strategy Relies on Influence Networks

Polymarket has operated largely outside the United States since 2022, when regulators barred it from accepting U.S. bets without a license.

Despite that restriction, its influencer network actively promoted the platform to American audiences throughout the 2024 election cycle.

Trading volumes surged nearly 400 percent between September and October 2024, according to Dune Analytics. Over $1.5 billion traded on a Trump victory wager alone, while more than $1 billion flowed behind then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

Modabber once wrote that the key to growth is “a product people can’t shut up about” — a philosophy that appears to have guided the influencer strategy directly.

The Trump administration later dropped two federal investigations into Polymarket. The company then spent $112 million to acquire a licensed U.S. exchange, clearing a path toward an official re-entry into the American market.

One X user captured the sentiment in August 2025: “The cultural relevance and brand recognition of Polymarket is something that cannot be faked.” Modabber reposted it, adding: “CANNOT BE FAKED.”

Competitor Kalshi has also used influencer partnerships to grow its audience. One source told Politico that at the height of the 2024 election cycle, major influencers were essentially split between the two platforms. “Kalshi and Polymarket, they literally at some point owned all big influencers,” the source said.

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