1789 Capital, the venture firm in which Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, is heading a large new financing for Polymarket that would put the prediction-market company at a $21 billion valuation. A spokesperson for the firm said the platform is seeking $1 billion in fresh capital, with 1789 Capital expected to put in about $300 million.
That commitment comes on top of earlier stakes totaling roughly $200 million, which would make the firm one of Polymarket’s most significant private backers if the round closes as described.
The planned valuation is a sharp step up from the roughly $15 billion figure attached to Polymarket earlier this year.
That earlier mark already reflected a dramatic climb from the far smaller price at which 1789 Capital first bought in, when the company was still valued in the low hundreds of millions.
Prediction platforms have attracted a surge of users and capital over the past year by letting people trade on the likelihood of real-world events, from politics and policy announcements to sports and entertainment.
Polymarket and rival Kalshi have become the two most visible names in that category.
The latest financing was first reported by Bloomberg and then detailed by The Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the talks.
Polymarket itself declined to comment in that account.
Intercontinental Exchange remains the company’s largest disclosed shareholder after reporting in July that a $1.6 billion holding represented about 22 percent of outstanding shares.
A completed 1789-led round would still leave ICE in that position while substantially increasing the Trump-linked firm’s exposure.
Trump Jr.’s ties to the sector go beyond this check.
He joined Kalshi as an adviser last year and received equity then valued at more than $300,000.
He has also advised Polymarket after 1789 Capital’s earlier investment.
That dual involvement has drawn attention because the industry’s fortunes have improved under the current administration.
Federal regulators previously restricted Polymarket from taking US wagers; a later license allowed it to operate more openly at home.
President Trump has publicly said prediction markets would “thrive” under his leadership, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), now led by a Trump appointee, has taken a more supportive stance while challenging some state efforts to police the products.
1789 Capital itself has expanded quickly.
Founded by Omeed Malik and Chris Buskirk and later joined by Trump Jr. after the 2024 election, the Florida-based firm has gone from managing a few hundred million dollars to more than $3 billion.
It markets an “America-first” thesis and has taken stakes in late-stage technology, defense, and AI companies as well as Polymarket.
Critics argue that several holdings have benefited from federal contracts or policy shifts; the firm presents the strategy as conventional private-market investing aligned with US industry.
For Polymarket, the money is meant to support growth as competition and legal fights intensify.
Kalshi raised a large round earlier at a $22 billion valuation, and both platforms still face pushback from sports leagues and state officials over event contracts.
The $1 billion package has not been described as fully closed, and the final investor list could change. Even so, a $21 billion mark would place Polymarket among the most richly valued private consumer finance businesses of the cycle and deepen the overlap between a politically connected fund and a market whose rules have shifted in Washington.