Prediction Markets Are Bookies With Venture Capital Funding

Backed by Silicon Valley–aligned venture capital and legal loopholes, prediction markets are creeping into every corner of life. They turn everything from measles outbreaks to government resignations to famine into opportunities for predatory speculation.

The prime directive of contemporary technology companies is simple: if you can do it, you should do it. A corollary follows: if you can make a profit from it, you must try. Any consequences, damages, or negative externalities are secondary concerns, if they are concerns at all.

The rise of “prediction markets,” and their creep into every facet of existence from sports to politics and pop culture, illustrates the point. These platforms, backed by big money from venture capital funding, let individual or institutional bettors wager on pot