Kalshi raises $1B at a $22B valuation from Coatue as prediction markets boom

Stablecoins Are the Story. Trading Is the Money.

Mastercard acquired stablecoin infra firm BVNK for $1.8B earlier this week. But that looks small next to what’s happening elsewhere in crypto markets.

Kalshi, one of the two main prediction markets, has reportedly raised $1B+ at a $22B valuation, doubling from $11B just months ago. Backed by Paradigm, Sequoia, a16z, ARK, and now Coatue.

Source: Bloomberg

➡️ Why this matters

Stablecoins dominate the narrative. But trading still dominates the revenue.

And the gap is not even close.

The comps tell the story:

- NYSE parent company ICE invested in spot and derivatives exchange OKX at $25B early this month

- Kraken has been preparing its IPO at $25B valuation

- Bullish, the institutional focused exchange, is trading at $6B valuation

And prediction markets are emerging as the next high-growth vertical: 

- Kalshi run-rate: ~$1.5B revenue

- Weekly volumes of two main prediction markets (Kalshi + Polymarket): $2B+

- Robinhood: prediction market volume +200% QoQ while crypto trading fell -38% YoY

Despite being early, prediction markets are already monetizing better than many stablecoin payment firms.

➡️ Bottom line

Crypto trading continues to be the biggest money market for the industry. And preduction market is likely to be an important engine for its next growth phase.

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