Kalshi

Crypto startups raised $11.2 billion in the first half of 2026, with disclosed capital flowing toward regulated, permissioned businesses. Payments and stablecoins, prediction markets, and trading platforms led the fundraising as major financial institutions backed licensed market infrastructure.

President Donald Trump is expected to attend a White House innovation meeting with executives from crypto, prediction markets and artificial intelligence. The gathering is set to precede the inaugural event of a new Commodity Futures Trading Commission advisory committee focused on innovation and regulatory priorities.

Kalshi is discussing a funding round of at least $750 million that could value the prediction-market platform at $40 billion. The talks come after a $1 billion raise at a $22 billion valuation in May and as the company weighs a potential IPO in 2027.

Kalshi is integrating Solana-based DoubleZeroEdge into its prediction market order book to support institutional demand for low-latency data. The move brings a Wall Street-style distribution model to onchain market infrastructure, giving connected traders simultaneous access to live exchange and onchain data.

FlightAware has voluntarily dismissed its lawsuit accusing Kalshi of using its flight data and trademark without permission. The withdrawal, filed without prejudice, comes as Kalshi’s flight-cancellation contracts show low trading volume compared with the platform’s broader activity.

The CFTC has ordered Kalshi to continue operating in New York after the state sued to block its sports prediction markets. The move deepens a regulatory clash over whether event contracts fall under federal derivatives oversight or state gambling law.

Polymarket is shifting short-dated crypto contracts from single-price snapshots to time-weighted average pricing after complaints and academic research highlighted possible settlement manipulation. The change is designed to make last-second price pushes harder and more expensive in fast-moving bitcoin markets.

Polymarket is reportedly pursuing a new funding round at a $20 billion valuation, months after closing capital at a $15 billion valuation. The move comes as prediction markets draw deeper interest from crypto platforms, brokerages and regulated competitors.

Fun CEO Alex Fine says standalone crypto onramps and bridge interfaces are likely to disappear as applications embed payments into their own products. The shift would move Web3 closer to a Web2 style experience, where users focus on the app action rather than the payment plumbing underneath.

New York has sued Kalshi, alleging the prediction-market platform offers sports and event wagers without a gaming license. The state is seeking to bar the company from operating what officials describe as an unlicensed gambling business, while pursuing restitution, damages and civil penalties.

EUR/USD advanced to its strongest level since July 16 after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and markets reassessed the path for policy. Technical traders are now focused on whether the pair can break higher or retreat toward the lower side of its channel at 1.1372.

DRW CEO Don Wilson argues that perpetual futures are not defined by high leverage, auto-deleveraging or crypto exchange design choices. His comments arrive as regulated markets explore whether perps can expand beyond crypto into areas such as precious metals.

CME Group is challenging the CFTC’s decision to allow crypto-linked perpetual futures on platforms including Kalshi and Coinbase. The dispute could influence how U.S. regulators define, approve and supervise always-on leveraged derivatives tied to digital assets and traditional commodities.

A federal judge has granted a preliminary injunction blocking Minnesota’s prediction market ban from taking effect against Kalshi, Polymarket and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The court found the challengers are likely to succeed in arguing that federal commodities law preempts the state statute.

Regulated perpetual futures are moving into American markets after becoming a dominant product in global crypto trading. Trading firms and exchanges are pushing ahead, while large banks remain cautious over liquidity, regulation, clearing and infrastructure.

Fanatics has agreed to acquire Water Street Labs and CX Clearinghouse from BGC Group, giving the sports company control of federally regulated prediction market infrastructure. The transaction strengthens its ability to list, clear and settle event contracts as competition grows across sports, finance and crypto-linked platforms.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has cautioned prediction market operators that broad, template-style event contract certifications can fall short of regulatory requirements. The advisory underscores growing scrutiny of a fast-expanding market that includes political, sports and other event-based contracts.

Kalshi has launched a U.S. Midterms Hub designed to show live market expectations for Senate and House races ahead of November’s elections. The move comes as the prediction market platform seeks regulatory approval to expand perpetual contracts beyond crypto into gold, silver and platinum.

Hyperliquid is preparing an enhancement to its HIP-4 upgrade that would allow permissionless deployment of prediction markets on the decentralized exchange. The feature is slated to reach testnet before mainnet, while deployers would need to stake HYPE and operate within validator-approved templates.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has ordered Kalshi not to reverse Michigan customer transactions tied to a state court order. The move deepens a broader clash between federal derivatives oversight and state efforts to treat certain prediction market contracts as illegal gambling.

Prediction markets posted a record breakout during the first month of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Kalshi, Polymarket and Rothera drawing massive volume and new users. The surge showed how event contracts are moving deeper into mainstream sports wagering and institutional trading circles.

Polymarket’s U.S. affiliate has applied for a National Futures Association license as part of a plan to offer margin trading to U.S. customers. The effort would still require Commodity Futures Trading Commission approval for rulebook changes allowing positions that are not fully collateralized.

Polymarket is mounting a broad U.S. rehabilitation effort after a four-year ban, using a CFTC-supervised mobile app, sports partnerships and social media marketing to rebuild trust. The campaign follows past regulatory scrutiny, a settlement with the CFTC and investigations that were later dropped without charges.

Coinbase sent users an AI-generated breaking news alert claiming Norway had beaten Brazil before the World Cup match had started. The company said it fixed the inaccurate story and made updates aimed at preventing similar AI errors.