Polymarket Faces Lawsuit After Traders Challenge ‘No’ Outcome on Strategy Bitcoin Sale

Two Polymarket users have taken the platform to court, accusing it of changing the terms of a market after trading had already closed and blocking what they believe should have been a winning payout. 

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The complaint, filed on 3 July in the New York Supreme Court, comes from traders William Wood and Thomas Bush, who say the platform’s handling of the Strategy Bitcoin sale market denied them the value of their “Yes” shares. 

Their lawsuit names Polymarket chief executive Shayne Coplan and chief marketing officer Matthew Modabber. 

Wood and Bush are asking the court to award them the $1‑per‑share payout they say they earned, along with damages and legal costs. 

They argue that Polymarket’s decision to settle the market as “No” broke the agreement they entered when buying shares. They claim the platform violated its duty of good faith, enriched itself at their expense, and misled users through its advertising and market descriptions. 

Polymarket accused of trying to ‘control payout’

The market at the centre of the dispute asked a simple question: would Strategy sell any Bitcoin before May 31? Strategy later confirmed in a June 1 SEC filing that it had sold 32 BTC between May 26 and May 31, its first sale in years. 

Because that disclosure arrived a day after the cutoff, Polymarket added a note saying confirmation outside the window did not count, and the market was ultimately settled as “No” after a vote by UMA, the oracle used to resolve disputes. 

Strategy has since outlined plans for further sales, including up to $1.25 billion to support dividends, and this week reported another $216 million sold under its monetization program.

But Wood and Bush argue that none of this changes the core issue: Strategy’s filing was the primary source named in the market rules, and it clearly showed a sale within the timeframe. 

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They say Polymarket introduced a new confirmation requirement after trading ended, undermining the promise of objective outcomes. In their complaint, they claim a market that ignores a proven event “does not seek truth; it controls payout.”

Over 1,000 disputed markets for Polymarket in 2026

Polymarket is dealing with a record wave of challenges this year, logging more than 1,150 disputed markets, already higher than the total seen in 2025.

Investigations by Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal have pointed to a pattern behind many of these fights, noting that a small group of large wallets often influences outcomes and that several UMA voters hold positions in the very markets they help settle. 

The Strategy Bitcoin sale dispute fits into that wider picture. It has become Polymarket’s biggest clash since last year’s $237 million market over whether Ukraine’s president wore a suit, and the law firm behind the current case, Burwick Law, says other traders have approached them with similar complaints. 

Polymarket has not commented publicly on the lawsuit, even as scrutiny around its dispute process continues to grow.  

Despite the pressure, the platform’s rise has not slowed. Its U.S. arm now operates as a CFTC‑registered exchange, and Polymarket has drawn close to $2 billion from NYSE parent ICE. 

The company was valued at $9 billion last year and, by April, was reportedly seeking another $400 million in funding at a $15 billion valuation. 

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Source: DeCrypt