tl;dr
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel have collectively invested $70 million in the decentralized prediction platform Polymarket. The platform, which focuses on predictions related to culture, technology, news, and politics, recently raised $45 million in a Series B r...
Ethereum Co-founder Vitalik Buterin and PayPal Co-founder Peter Thiel Invest $70 Million in Polymarket Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel have collectively invested $70 million in the decentralized prediction platform Polymarket. The platform, which focuses on predictions related to culture, technology, news, and politics, recently raised $45 million in a Series B round led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, and an additional $25 million in a second round led by General Catalyst and Polychain. Polymarket has seen significant adoption as an alternative news source and has managed $202.7 million worth of predictions this year.
The platform has gained traction through its election betting market, with $170 million wagered on US election-related events. Despite regulatory challenges, the funding reflects the growing momentum for crypto initiatives in the US, as seen with other recent investments in the crypto space.
CEO Shayne Coplan emphasized that Vitalik Buterin is among the betting platform’s backers. Buterin has used it to track OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Donald Trump has even used it to analyze his presidential aspirations.
The election betting market has boosted platforms such as Polymarket, which manages 170 million dollars wagered on events related to the US elections. For instance, Donald Trump leads Polymarket’s polls with 49% of the votes.
“When we think about the US market as well as investing, researching into it, we know that is likely not something that will pay dividends immediately,” Coplan added.
The funding demonstrates the momentum for crypto initiatives in the US despite regulatory setbacks. Indeed, billionaire Tim Draper recently led a $3.5 million seed funding round in Zest Protocol, a Bitcoin lending startup.
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