Polymarket

Polymarket is the largest prediction market by trading volume. Launched in 2020, it runs on the Polygon blockchain with positions denominated in the USDC stablecoin. Its order books on flagship markets — major elections, geopolitical events, headline economic questions — are typically the deepest in the industry.

After a 2022 settlement with the CFTC, Polymarket operated outside the United States for several years. Following its acquisition of a CFTC-licensed exchange and subsequent regulatory approvals, it began restoring access for US users through a regulated intermediated structure. Access requirements and product availability continue to evolve, so users should confirm current eligibility on the platform.

Polymarket's flagship economic feature is its fee model: it has historically charged no trading fees, making round-trip costs on most markets effectively the bid-ask spread plus any blockchain or conversion costs involved in funding an account with USDC.

The platform's crypto-native design is both its strength and its friction point. Settlement is fast and global, and markets exist for a very wide range of events. But funding an account involves stablecoins, and resolution on some markets relies on decentralized oracle mechanisms, which have occasionally produced disputed outcomes.