Donald Trump Jr.-linked investment firm 1789 Capital is set to lead a $1 billion funding round for Polymarket, valuing the blockchain-based prediction market at $21 billion and narrowing the gap with rival Kalshi.
According to a Bloomberg report, 1789 Capital plans to invest about $300 million in the round. The investment would take the firm’s disclosed funding in Polymarket to roughly $500 million.
The new financing would mark another major step up in Polymarket’s valuation after the company raised capital at about $15 billion earlier this year. It also puts the platform closer to Kalshi, which raised $1 billion at a $22 billion valuation in May.
1789 Capital doubles down
The latest investment builds on an existing connection between Polymarket and 1789 Capital. Donald Trump Jr., a partner at 1789 Capital, joined Polymarket’s advisory board last year after the investment firm backed the prediction-market platform. He also serves as a strategic adviser to Kalshi, giving him ties to both of the sector’s biggest prediction-market competitors.
Trump Jr. has said his investment activities are separate from his role as a private citizen and that he has no policy position or role in the Trump administration. For Polymarket, the fresh capital comes as prediction markets expand beyond their traditional political focus into sports, economic events and other real-world outcomes.
Polymarket closes in on Kalshi
Polymarket’s latest $21 billion valuation marks a sharp increase from the $15 billion valuation attached to its April funding round, when the company was seeking about $400 million. The company has also faced stronger competition from Kalshi, which has gained market share as regulated prediction markets have expanded in the United States.
The latest financing therefore gives Polymarket more financial firepower as the two companies compete for traders, institutional attention and a larger role in the emerging event-contract market.
ICE remains a major backer
Polymarket has also attracted substantial support from traditional financial-market institutions.
Intercontinental Exchange, the parent of the New York Stock Exchange, has invested about $1.6 billion in Polymarket preferred shares, according to an ICE filing cited in the supplied reports. The holdings had a carrying value of about $2 billion as of June 30 and represented roughly 22% of outstanding shares, or 14% on a fully diluted basis.
ICE first announced an investment of up to $2 billion in Polymarket In October 2025. The deal initially valued the company at about $9 billion post-money and included plans to distribute Polymarket’s event-driven data to institutional clients.
ICE CEO Jeff Sprecher said in August that the exchange operator could consider participating in another Polymarket financing.
That would give Polymarket access not only to venture capital but also to a major traditional-market infrastructure provider as it attempts to establish prediction markets as a broader financial product.
A regulated route back to the US
The funding comes after Polymarket spent years rebuilding its US presence.
Polymarket stopped serving US users following a 2022 settlement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which fined the platform $1.4 million for offering unregistered event-based trading contracts and required it to restrict its US operations. The company paid the $1.4 million civil monetary penalty as part of the settlement.
Its return began with the acquisition of QCEX for $112 million in July 2025. The deal gave Polymarket control of a CFTC-licensed designated contract market and derivatives clearing organization.
The CFTC later issued a no-action letter covering QCEX and QC Clearing, providing regulatory relief related to certain reporting and recordkeeping requirements for event contracts.
Polymarket now operates an international blockchain-based venue alongside its regulated US operation. The international platform uses USDC on Polygon for settlement, while the US venue operates with identity verification and dollar settlement through approved intermediaries.
Regulation remains a key risk
The company’s rapid valuation growth comes as US regulators and states continue to disagree over how prediction markets should be governed.
The Trump administration has supported federal oversight of prediction markets through the CFTC. At the same time, several states have challenged the industry’s expansion, particularly over sports-related event contracts.
Kalshi and other operators argue that contracts offered through CFTC-regulated exchanges fall under federal commodities law. Some states have taken the opposing view and sought to regulate the products under state gambling laws.
The dispute has moved into federal courts, where decisions have varied over the extent of federal protection from state gaming restrictions.
For Polymarket, the regulatory landscape is particularly important because its return to the US has been built around acquiring and operating through licensed market infrastructure.
What comes next
The planned $1 billion financing would give Polymarket a fresh valuation above $20 billion and further cement the prediction-market sector as a major area of investor interest.
The financing remains subject to completion, while Polymarket continues to expand its regulated US business and navigate the unresolved regulatory battle surrounding prediction markets.
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