Polymarket announced Wednesday it is acquiring Brahma, a DeFi infrastructure startup that has processed over $1 billion in transactions, its third deal since February.

Brahma builds crypto plumbing for businesses managing digital assets, and the deal is about reducing the friction that still sits underneath Polymarket’s blockchain-based platform: wallet creation, deposits, converting shares and cashing out.

What Happened

CEO Shayne Coplan got Brahma co-founder Alessandro Tenconi on a Telegram call at 1 a.m. in September 2025.

Tenconi said Coplan was looking for builders who could move fast and ship quality. Brahma will wind down its other projects to join Polymarket full-time.

By tapping into Brahma's risk-tolerant DeFi user base, Polymarket also hopes to inject much-needed liquidity into smaller, thinly traded niche contracts.

The acquisition signals a doubling down on Polymarket’s crypto roots, drawing a sharp contrast with Kalshi, which operates largely on traditional fiat currency.

Polymarket acquired developer tools startup Dome and boutique executive search firm Lunch in February.

Separately, the company announced “The Situation Room,” on X, a bar in Washington, D.C., with live X feeds, flight radar, Bloomberg terminals and Polymarket screens. The prediction market describes it as the world’s first bar dedicated to monitoring the situation.

Why It Matters

The expansion lands during a rough week for prediction market regulation. On Tuesday, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) introduced the BETS OFF Act to ban prediction market bets on military operations and other sensitive government actions.

Murphy has been building toward this since blockchain analysts flagged $1.2 million in suspected insider profits on Iran strike timing. Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie has warned both platforms face lawsuits in all 50 states.

Polymarket and Kalshi are both reportedly targeting $20 billion valuations in new fundraising rounds.

Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ:HOOD) already offers event contracts through Kalshi. DraftKings (NASDAQ:DKNG) has called prediction markets a $10 billion opportunity but has struggled to keep pace.

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