Kalshi hits $5B valuation days after rival Polymarket gets $2B NYSE backing at $8B

Kalshi, a prediction market that enables individuals to wager on future occasions, introduced that it raised over $300 million at a $5 billion valuation. The corporate’s worth has elevated 2.5x since its final fundraise simply three months in the past, when it was valued at $2 billion.

The recent capital got here from Kalshi’s current investor, Sequoia Capital, with new investor Andreessen Horowitz co-leading the round. Paradigm Ventures, CapitalG, and Coinbase Ventures additionally participated.

Kalshi additionally revealed that customers in 140 international locations can now make bets on its platform.

The prediction market is seeing a dramatic surge in exercise: Kalshi is about to achieve $50 billion in annualized buying and selling quantity, up considerably from the roughly $300 million quantity posted final yr, the New York Times reported.

Kalshi’s fundraise announcement follows one made simply days earlier by archrival Polymarket, which revealed that it had secured an funding of as much as $2 billion from Intercontinental Alternate (ICE), the proprietor of the New York Inventory Alternate, at a pre-money valuation of $8 billion. The deal valued Polymarket at $8 billion pre-money, a monumental enhance from its $1 billion valuation solely two months earlier in August.

Each Kalshi and Polymarket rose to prominence final yr, drawing vital consideration for his or her prediction markets on the presidential election consequence.

Polymarket has been barred from serving U.S. residents since 2022, following a settlement with the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee (CFTC). In July, the corporate acquired a derivatives change and a clearing home. The transfer helped Polymarket obtain the correct to reenter the U.S. market. Final month, the corporate’s CEO and founder, Shayne Coplan, said on X: “Polymarket has been given the inexperienced mild to go reside within the USA by the CFTC.”

Kalshi secured the correct for Individuals to make use of its platform after successfully suing the CFTC final yr.