BlockBeats News, October 13th, according to Fortune magazine, a competition for the dominant position in the prediction market is unfolding between Kalshi and Polymarket. The prediction market has existed for many years, but it wasn’t until 2024 that it truly took off under a more relaxed regulatory environment. Both companies announced new funding rounds last week, but Polymarket’s valuation reaching tens of billions of dollars has caused even more of a stir.
The product differences between the two startups are almost as minor as Uber and Lyft. Apart from Kalshi having a slight lead in the regulatory process, the most significant difference is that Polymarket is built on blockchain infrastructure. Kalshi is eager to add crypto features, but catching up with the competition is not easy—Polymarket has been transacting on the Polygon Layer 2 network since its inception, and its founder Shayne Coplan (now 27 years old) even participated in the Ethereum ICO during high school.
Critics can find many issues with Polymarket, but no one can question its authentic crypto background. The more challenging question is: why can Polymarket’s “crypto lineage” drive its valuation far above its competitors? Especially when Kalshi has significantly entered the U.S. sports betting market and has far surpassed Polymarket in terms of app downloads and active users. The answer may be summarized in two words: token airdrop.
Shayne Coplan posted a ranking of cryptocurrencies last week, with a (currently fictional) token called POLY ranking fifth.
