Polymarket has begun seeking U.S. approval for margin trading. CFTC approval is needed to allow non-cash-collateralised trades. The largest prediction market platform, Polymarket, is not a pl
The largest prediction market platform, Polymarket, is not a place where people bet on elections anymore. The platform is making a deliberate push toward institutional territory. On July 3, Polymarket filed an application through its affiliate, Coming Home GBA LLC, to operate as a futures commission merchant with the National Futures Association.
That is a regulatory step which would allow the platform to offer margin trading to U.S. users for the first time. Margin trading lets users open leveraged positions by borrowing funds, controlling larger positions without putting up the full capital upfront.
For prediction markets, that’s a significant upgrade. One that shifts the platform from a retail-first product to something that institutional and professional traders would actually consider seriously. Polymarket is not coming into this from a weak position. Furthermore, the weekly notional trading volume topped $4 billion in June, a record high for the platform.
That’s not a company looking for a lifeline, that’s a market leader looking to level up. But there is a ceiling on how far a fully collateralised model can go. Also, the margin trading removes that ceiling, allowing sophisticated traders to take larger positions with less capital sitting on the sidelines. That’s the audience Polymarket is going after.
With the competitive pressure, the rival platform Kalshi secured its FCM license earlier this year and moved fast. In addition, launching perpetual futures products that surpassed $5.5 billion in trading volume within two weeks of going live.
Filing with the NFA is step one. Polymarket also needs CFTC approval to amend its rulebook to permit non-fully collateralised trading, a separate and potentially longer process. Moreover, the U.S. rules would also require margin product users to go through additional identity checks, including providing employer information, which adds friction for the retail crowd but aligns with institutional compliance expectations.
The platform’s blockchain infrastructure, while a technical strength, has drawn increased scrutiny from regulators and Congress over insider-trading risks, a tension that is not going away anytime soon. Polymarket is building something bigger than a prediction market. Whether regulators let it get there on its preferred timeline is the part nobody can predict.
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