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A Polymarket account registered in the name of British political donor George Cottrell received about $8.8 million in cryptocurrency from two unidentified sources in October 2024. The funds were used to bet on Donald Trump winning the U.S. presidential election, producing a reported profit of $4.46 million.
Two Wallets Funded Trump Election Bets
The account, named GCottrell93, received about $7 million through five transfers from a wallet linked to the OKX crypto exchange. A second wallet funded through ChangeNOW sent another $1.83 million.
The account placed bets on Trump after each transfer. Public blockchain records show the movement of the funds, but they do not identify the people or companies controlling the sending wallets.
The account’s election positions generated about $4.46 million in profit after Trump won. It is not known whether Cottrell supplied the funds, placed the bets for himself or allowed others to use the account. His lawyers said he would not comment on his financial affairs or on specific transactions.
Transfers Came During Cottrell’s Support for Farage
The deposits arrived while Cottrell was providing financial support to Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. He covered costs including staff, security, transport, accommodation, and travel during 2024.
The Polymarket transfers have not been publicly connected to those expenses. Reform UK did not respond to questions about the account and its funding.
A separate High Court claim filed in 2025 alleged that betting accounts controlled by Cottrell had previously been used by a professional gambling syndicate. The filing described an arrangement in which Cottrell and other participants shared the profits. It did not allege that the arrangement was illegal.
Account Holds $61,000 Bet on JD Vance
The GCottrell93 account remained active at the time of the report. It held about $126,000 in stablecoins and open positions worth nearly $63,000.
Those positions included a roughly $61,000 bet on JD Vance winning the 2028 Republican presidential nomination. No public evidence has linked the $8.8 million to illegal activity. The available records confirm the transfers and betting activity, but not the original owners of the funds or the final recipients of the profits.
