Polymarket Migrates to Native $USDC From Bridged Token


#Polymarket has partnered with Circle to transition its settlement infrastructure to native $USDC over the coming months, replacing the bridged USDC.e currently used as trading collateral on the prediction market platform. The migration eliminates reliance on cross-chain bridges for the stablecoin backing its event contracts.


#Circle will issue the native version directly on Polygon, where Polymarket operates. Native $USDC offers one-to-one redemption for U.S. dollars through Circle's regulated entities, providing what the companies described as a capital-efficient and scalable alternative to bridged representations. The change affects all trading activity, order placement, and settlements on the platform.


Cross-chain bridges lock assets on one network and issue corresponding tokens on another, introducing security trade-offs not present on single blockchains. The shift moves Polymarket's collateral to a stablecoin issued and redeemed directly by Circle rather than a wrapped version transferred across networks. Deposits from Ethereum, Solana, Arbitrum, and Base currently convert automatically to USDC.e on Polygon.


Polymarket founder and CEO Shayne Coplan stated that using $USDC will establish a consistent, dollar-denominated settlement standard as participation grows. The platform operates as an on-chain prediction market where users trade contracts tied to #real-world outcomes, including #cryptocurrency prices, political events, and other verifiable results.


$USDC ranks as the second-largest stablecoin with a market capitalization of approximately $70.77 billion, behind Tether's $USDT. DefiLlama data shows the token maintains significant liquidity across multiple blockchains and decentralized finance protocols. The migration to native issuance reflects broader industry movement toward direct #stablecoin deployment rather than bridged alternatives.

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February 06, 2026 at 1:02 AM
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