Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, has announced a $2bn investment in Polymarket, placing the blockchain-based prediction market platform at a post-money valuation of $9bn.
The investment, revealed by Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan on X, marks one of the largest institutional commitments to decentralised finance (DeFi) and prediction markets to date.
ICE, which operates multiple global exchanges and clearing houses, will also begin distributing Polymarket data to thousands of financial institutions worldwide.
Coplan described the deal as a "major step in bringing prediction markets into the financial mainstream," highlighting ICE's scale and credibility alongside Polymarket's consumer reach.
Founded in 2020, Polymarket enables users to trade positions on real-world events using blockchain-based technology. In the first half of 2025 alone, the platform recorded over $6bn in trading volume.
The new investment follows Polymarket's growing profile in financial and cultural spheres, including a recent data-sharing agreement with X designed to expand the visibility of prediction markets.
The ICE investment also follows Polymarket's $112m acquisition in July of QCEX, a Commodity Futures Trading Commission-licensed exchange and clearing house, in a transaction designed to enable regulated access for US users.
Polymarket's journey has not been without controversy; the company has faced regulatory scrutiny in multiple jurisdictions, including being blocked in Singapore, France and Taiwan. Additionally, in November 2024, the FBI reportedly raided Coplan's residence and seized electronic devices as part of an investigation into whether US-based users accessed the platform during the US election period, potentially through virtual private networks.
Regardless, with this latest deal, Polymarket has secured one of the highest valuations in its sector, underscoring increasing institutional interest in blockchain-based event trading.
