Users bet real money on sports results for now, with plans to quickly add proposition markets and eventually return to election contracts.
Crypto News
The blockchain-based prediction market that dominated 2024 election coverage is back in the U.S. with federal approval, starting with sports wagering before expanding into broader event contracts.
Polymarket's iOS app began rolling out Wednesday through a waitlist system, with Android support coming soon. The launch marks the platform's first U.S. operations since 2022, when the CFTC shut it down for running an unregistered derivatives exchange and imposed a $1.4 million penalty.
Founder Shayne Coplan spent the past three years rebuilding the business to meet regulatory requirements. The company acquired QCX, a licensed derivatives exchange and clearinghouse, for $112 million this summer, then secured official CFTC clearance on Nov. 25 to operate as an intermediated exchange under federal commodities rules.
The platform is positioning itself as fundamentally different from traditional sportsbooks, framing its offerings as trading venues for real-world event outcomes rather than gambling products. Users bet real money on sports results for now, with plans to quickly add proposition markets and eventually return to election contracts.
Polymarket faces intense competition from Kalshi, which recently closed a $1 billion funding round at an $11 billion valuation. The two platforms have been racing to sign distribution partnerships with sports leagues and mainstream platforms.
Polymarket partnered with fantasy sports app PrizePicks and signed on as a clearinghouse for DraftKings' planned prediction platform. Kalshi secured deals with CNN and integrated with Robinhood, where it sometimes accounts for over half the broker's total trading volume, according to Bernstein analysis.
Both platforms exploded in the second half of this year, though Kalshi recently overtook Polymarket in monthly volume. October marked the best month for event betting ever recorded, with Kalshi processing $5.81 billion compared to Polymarket's $3.7 billion.
The sports focus creates legal complications. Kalshi is currently fighting state gaming regulators in Nevada and New Jersey over its offerings, with a federal judge recently ruling that Nevada gaming laws apply to Kalshi's operations.
Polymarket is pursuing a valuation of up to $15 billion after securing $2 billion in strategic investment from Intercontinental Exchange, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, at a $9 billion valuation. The startup named Donald Trump Jr. as an advisor in August, signaling ambitions to capitalize on shifting regulatory attitudes toward prediction markets under the new administration.
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