Prediction marketplace Polymarket will partner with ICE (NYSE: ICE), the operator of the New York Stock Exchange. At the same time, ICE will invest $2 billion (in cash) at a post-money valuation of $9 billion. The partnership involves ICE becoming a distributor of Polymarket data, enabling global participation.
At the same time, ICE and Polymarket plan to partner on future tokenization initiatives. Tokenization typically references digital securities or the digitization of real-world assets.
In a statement on X, Polymarket stated:
“We are excited to announce that Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) — the parent company of NYSE is making a $2b strategic investment at a $9b post-money valuation. Together, we’re building the next evolution of markets. A special thank you to all those who have supported us till now. This is just the beginning.”
In a release, Jeffrey Sprecher, ICE Chair and CEO, said the partnership involves a market established in 1792 with a revolutionary company in the DeFi space.
“Shayne Coplan [founder and CEO of Polymarket] has assembled a team at Polymarket to create a user-driven company relentlessly focused on product, building usage and distribution. There are opportunities across markets which ICE, together with Polymarket, can uniquely serve, and we are excited about where this investment can take us.”
Coplan described the deal as a significant step in prediction markets, bringing the platform into the mainstream.
“Together, we’re expanding how individuals and institutions use probabilities to understand and price the future. Jeff and his team have redefined how modern markets operate, establishing ICE as the gold standard for trusted financial infrastructure. By combining ICE’s institutional scale and credibility with Polymarket’s consumer savvy, we will be able to deliver world-class products for the modern investor. Realizing the potential of new technologies, such as tokenization, will require collaboration between established market leaders and next-generation innovators. We couldn’t be more excited to build together.”
Coplan added on X that he remembered reading Robin Hanson’s literature on prediction markets and thinking it was a good idea.
“There were a million reasons why it shouldn’t work, countless arguments of why not to do it, and the odds were against us, but we had to try.”
Caplan called Polymarket still a work in progress while noting that “It just takes someone crazy enough to spend their life willing it into existence.”
During its forthcoming earnings call on October 30th, ICE is expected to share more information on the deal.
Shares of ICE jumped by over 3% in premarket trading.