Wall Street Giant’s $2 Billion Bet on Crypto Predictions – Why NYSE’s Owner is Backing Polymarket
Intercontinental Exchange Inc. – best known as the owner of the NYSE and other major exchanges – is nearing a deal to buy a $2 billion stake in Polymarket, according to reports by The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. Such an investment would value the upstart platform as high as $8–10 billionreuters.comenergyconnects.com, making it one of the richest deals ever in the emerging prediction market sector. A formal announcement could come as soon as today, sources told the WSJenergyconnects.com. This would be a landmark mainstream endorsement of crypto-based betting markets. ICE’s backing – alongside venture investors like Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund – signals that Wall Street sees serious potential in Polymarket’s approachreuters.comreuters.com. Indeed, ICE’s stock price rose about 4.4% in pre-market trading after the news brokereuters.com, reflecting excitement that the exchange operator is moving into a fast-growing new market. If finalized, the $2 billion stake would also mark ICE’s largest foray into the cryptocurrency space, after past ventures like its Bakkt digital asset platform.
