Polymarket eyes $50M funding round, hints at potential token launch

Polymarket is reportedly looking to launch a token amid talks of raising $50 million in new funding, according to The Information.

According to the report, the decentralized marketplace may offer investors warrants for future token purchases as part of this round. However, if the token plan proceeds, it’s unclear if investors will receive equity, token warrants, or both.

Meanwhile, the token would reportedly allow users to verify real-world event outcomes. It is uncertain whether the token will replace or complement the platform’s current use of the UMA Protocol, which relies on community votes to resolve market outcomes.

This fundraising follows a previous total raise of $70 million in funding rounds that included billionaire investor Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.

Polymarket’s success

Since launching on the Ethereum layer-2 network Polygon in 2020, Polymarket has emerged as a top crypto product. Over the past year, the platform has enjoyed unbridled success thanks to its role in the impending US elections.

Notably, Polymarket has even gained attention from major media outlets like CNN and Bloomberg, which integrate the platform for their coverage.

This significant success has helped it surpass $400 million in trading volume this September and recorded over 65,000 monthly active traders, according to Dune Analytics data. It has since surpassed $1 billion in volume.

However, this success has drawn regulatory scrutiny. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Rostin Behnam reportedly stated that the commission was “monitoring any activity” on offshore election-betting platforms that exposed US customers to risk.

Potential airdrop

News of the potential token launch has led to speculation that Polymarket may airdrop tokens to its early users.

Traders have reportedly been increasing their trading volume, hoping to secure a larger share of the possible airdrop rewards.

Popular airdrop farmer CC2Ventures stated:

“[Polymarket] could potentially be one of the fattest airdrops in history given their PMF and mindshare, and especially if: The initial Snapshot is already taken Even multiple seasons would be fine, as long as early adopters who used the protocol ‘before it was obvious’ have already received their share of incentives.”

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