Published 11:12 IST, November 4th 2020
US Election 2020: Mystery businessman from UK bets £4 million on Trump's victory
An unnamed British businessman has staked nearly £4 million or $5 million on US President Donald Trump being reelected in the ongoing US Election 2020.
An unnamed British businessman has staked nearly £4 million or $5 million on US President Donald Trump being reelected in the ongoing US Election 2020. As per the Sun report, the mystery Bri is an offshore ex-banker put down what is being called the ‘biggest ever political wager’ at private bookies on the island of Curacao in the Caribbean. He has reportedly consulted with insiders on the Republican’s ‘Make America Great Again’ or MAGA campaign.
If Trump goes on to win in the presidential elections against Democratic challenger Joe Biden, the British businessman would win almost £11.5 million or $15 million. The Sun cited its source saying that word of the bet by ex-banker has been making several rounds and they think it is the biggest ever made on politics. However, As per the Associated Press projection, Biden is currently leading with 213 electoral seats while Trump is at 118 as states begin to close down polling.
£1 million on Biden to defeat Trump
Meanwhile, the chances of Trump being re-elected increased sharply overnight in the online betting markets as Americans head to the polls on November 3, according to Betfair Exchange. Republican leader's odds of winning the election improved to 39% from 35% on the UK-based platform, while Joe Biden's chances degraded from 65% to 61%. Betfair has betted £1 million on Biden to beat Trump.
Due to a 2018 US Supreme Court ruling, gamblers in the United States are not allowed to place legal wagers on the election, even as legal sports betting is popular in the country. Thus, the UK's legal betting market is soaring as waging on elections in the country is legal. As per reports, the US election is set to be the most-bet-upon event in history.
The £1 million wager is reported to be the third-largest bet in Betfair's history. The bets are flowing into Betfair at a record pace, with £274 million having been recorded by Monday morning i.e. a day before the US elections. It takes several days for a bet to appear in the data, hence the October 29 bet has shown up only now.
Updated 11:11 IST, November 4th 2020