Polymarket Hits $1B Volume, Boosted by U.S. Election Bets

Polymarket Reaches $1 Billion in Bets on U.S. Election

What is Polymarket?

Polymarket is a website where people place bets on future events. It allows users to guess what might happen in politics, sports, business, and even cryptocurrency. If their guess is correct, they can win money.

Recently, Polymarket reached $1 billion in total bets. This means people have placed huge amounts of money on different events over time. A big reason for this is the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Many people are betting on who will become the next president.

Biggest Month for Betting

July 2024 was Polymarket’s biggest month ever. That month alone, $343 million was bet on the website. This is much more than the $111 million bet in June and the $63 million bet in May. This shows how much excitement there is around the election.

The U.S. presidential election happens every four years, and it’s a big event for Americans. People want to know who will lead the country, and some even try to make money by betting on the results.

Who Are People Betting On?

At the moment, Donald Trump is the favorite to win. He has a 60% chance, based on the bets placed so far. However, Kamala Harris is gaining popularity. Since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Harris’s chances have grown from 18% to 38%.

Many of the bets on Harris are from smaller individual bets. On the other hand, Trump’s supporters seem more confident. The top five people betting on him own a total of 9.1 million shares in his contract.

One of the biggest Trump bettors, known as Larpas, has placed large bets on both Trump winning and Harris losing. If Trump wins, Larpas could earn $3.38 million from these bets.

Right now, the total amount bet on the presidential election is $423 million. This number will likely grow even more as Election Day gets closer.

Other Things People Bet On Polymarket is not just about politics. People can also bet on:

• Sports (such as basketball, soccer, and the Olympics)

• Business events (like stock market trends)

• Cryptocurrency prices

These different betting options attract many users who are interested in different topics.

New Changes on Polymarket

Polymarket is growing fast. In May 2024, it raised $70 million from investors, including famous names like Peter Thiel and Vitalik Buterin, who helped create Ethereum, a popular cryptocurrency.

In July 2024, the platform made a big change by adding credit and debit card payments. Before this, users needed cryptocurrency to place bets. Now, even people who don’t own crypto can join. This could bring in even more users.

Another big change happened on July 16, when Nate Silver, a well-known election expert, joined Polymarket as an adviser. Silver is famous for predicting election results using data and statistics. His involvement could make Polymarket more trusted by users.

What About U.S. Laws?

Even though Polymarket focuses on U.S. events, it is not available to people in the United States. This is because of U.S. laws on election betting.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is a government agency that regulates markets where people bet on financial outcomes. The CFTC has strict rules about betting on elections, which is why Polymarket is blocked in the U.S.

Even though Americans cannot use Polymarket, people in other countries can still place bets on U.S. elections and other events.

What’s Next for Polymarket?

As Election Day gets closer, betting on Polymarket is expected to grow. More people will place bets on who they think will win.

The website is also planning to add leverage trading, which allows people to bet even larger amounts of money. This could lead to even bigger payouts for winners.

Even though U.S. users can’t join, Polymarket’s growth shows that many people enjoy betting on real-world events. The excitement around the 2024 presidential election has made it one of the most active betting events in history.

Conclusion

Polymarket has had a huge year, thanks to the U.S. election. The website has now handled $1 billion in bets, with Trump and Harris being the most popular choices. With new features and growing interest, Polymarket could become even bigger. However, due to U.S. laws, it remains blocked for American users.