r/ConservativesOnly

As deadly firestorms raged in Los Angeles County, carving a path of destruction that displaced families and killed 31 people, bets online were rolling in.

The wagers flowed into Polymarket, a company that bills itself as the largest platform for predicting global events, where it posed frequently asked questions about the Eaton and Palisades fires as they scorched communities. How fast would the blazes grow? How long would it take to contain them? How much would be destroyed?

According to a letter sent from nine senators this month to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates prediction market platforms, Polymarket accepted more than $1.2 million in predictions, or bets, on the January 2025 fires.

“That was fun. Thanks everyone. Until the next time!” one Polymarket user commented on a thread where users could put money on the Palisades fire’s containment date. Others, however, expressed some concerns about the morality of cashing in on the destruction.