A new study by researchers at Columbia University has found that trading activity polymarket was significantly inflated due to fictitious trading.
It turns out that almost every fourth transaction on polymarket over the last three years — fiction.
According to an analysis by experts at Columbia Business School, 45% of the total volume of wash trades was made in sports markets, 17% in election-related markets, 12% in political markets, and 3% in cryptocurrency markets.
The researchers noted, however, that the prediction platform «was not directly responsible for the manipulation, although it could have prevented it from happening.» A representative polymarket also said the company was reviewing the study’s findings but declined to comment further.
It was previously reported that the platform attracted more than 477,000 active traders in October, a 48% increase from the previous month, and total trading volume exceeded $3 billion (more than double the September figure). The sharp increase followed the announcement of the POLY token, as well as behind the plans upon returning to the US market.
Currently, only the POLY token ticker is known; the exact timing and conditions for receiving it have not yet been determined.