The White House reportedly sent an email to its staff on March 24, warning employees against using confidential internal information to place bets in financial markets or on betting platforms during the Iran war. The Wall Street Journal reported that the email was sent a day after US President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that talks with Iran were underway to stop the war and that the US would halt attacks on power plants in Tehran.
A series of well-timed and profitable bets has raised questions about potential insider trading linked to Trump’s decision-making on military actions carried out by the US in Iran as well as Venezuela.
The email was sent by the White House management office on March 24, according to a official who spoke on condition of anonymity while discussing a confidential matter, the report said.
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Following Trump’s post announcing a five-day pause in attacks on energy plants, oil prices fell sharply and stock markets rose. The WSJ reported that more than $760 million worth of oil futures contracts changed hands in under two minutes, citing Dow Jones Market Data.
More recently, three accounts on Polymarket earned over $600,000 by correctly betting on the timing of the ceasefire with Iran. Critics of the president, including many Democrats, quickly suggested that the profits may have been driven by advance knowledge of the policy shift.
While the White House did not address or confirm the authenticity of the warning directly, but spokesman Davis Ingle did rubbish the reports that anyone in the administration was actually using the information to make profit at the cost of public welfare. He said that “the only special interest that will ever guide President Trump is the best interest of the American people.” He added, “President Trump has been crystal clear: while he seeks a strong and profitable stock market for everyone, members of Congress and other government officials should be prohibited from using nonpublic information for financial benefit.”
Ethics rules prohibit government employees from gambling on federal property, and regulations are in place to prevent the use of government information for private gain. However, these unusual gains have taken many by surprise and have also triggered outrage, including among some of Trump’s supporters, said the WSJ report.