Shayne Coplan’s Polymarket is seeking to raise about $1 billion at a valuation above $20 billion, more than double its price tag from October, according to a Bloomberg report.
The talks are preliminary, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. A Polymarket spokesperson declined to comment.
The proposed valuation would put the platform nearly level with rival Kalshi, which secured a $22 billion valuation in May and hosted three times Polymarket’s trading volume last month, according to Dune Analytics data.
The deal Polymarket announced a day earlier offers a glimpse of how it may try to close that gap.
The Tennis Play
On Monday, Polymarket secured exclusive streaming rights for all ATP Tour and Challenger matches within the prediction market category, roughly 20,000 matches per season including Indian Wells, the Miami Open and the Nitto ATP Finals.
U.S. users will be able to watch live matches directly alongside tradable markets, a sportsbook-style watch-and-trade product. The deal builds on Polymarket’s existing league partnerships with MLS and MLB.
Sportradar Group AG (NASDAQ:SRAD), which distributes the ATP data, described the multi-year agreement in its second-quarter earnings as covering streaming, official data, live odds and customer acquisition. That last phrase may be the operative one.
The Money Behind the Ask
Bloomberg also revealed a previously undisclosed round that closed in April at a $15 billion valuation, including roughly $600 million from Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE), the owner of the New York Stock Exchange.
If the new round closes above $20 billion, the company’s proposed valuation would be up at least 33% in about four months.
Polymarket’s annualized revenue has reportedly tripled to more than $1.2 billion since its U.S. platform opened.
The company also hired former Uber executive Travis VanderZanden as chief growth officer, a role that includes overseeing marketing. It faces a Commodity Futures Trading Commission investigation over its marketing, including reported staged-bet videos and undisclosed influencer payments.
Investors now must decide whether the streaming bet can convert tennis fans into the volume that justifies Kalshi money.
Kalshi and Benzinga have an existing data collaboration agreement.
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