Polymarket eyes CFTC approval to reopen main platform to U.S. users

Polymarket has sought to reopen its main prediction markets platform to U.S. users as it is reportedly engaging regulators to remove a long-standing access ban.

According to Bloomberg, the company has been in discussions with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to lift restrictions that currently block American customers from its international exchange. 

Approval would require a formal commission vote, and the report added that vacant seats on the regulator could lower the threshold needed for a decision.

A successful outcome would undo conditions set in Polymarket’s 2022 settlement with the CFTC, which required the platform to restrict U.S. users and pay a $1.4 million civil penalty over unregistered event contracts. 

The company later re-entered the U.S. market in a limited form by acquiring crypto exchange QCEX, while keeping its primary platform unavailable to domestic traders.

In December 2025, Polymarket rolled out a U.S.-focused app with waitlist-only access, initially offering sports event contracts. The firm said at the time that sports markets would be “followed by markets on everything,” indicating plans to expand its offerings once regulatory clarity improves.

While Polymarket worked through restrictions, rival platform Kalshi strengthened its position in the U.S. market and secured a role as an official prediction market provider for Coinbase. 

Data from a Dune dashboard compiled by Datadashboards showed Polymarket once accounted for over 90% of monthly notional volume in November 2024, though its share has declined since September 2025 as Kalshi gained traction.

Platform rejects breach claims amid security concerns

At the same time, Polymarket has pushed back against claims that user data was compromised after a dark web post alleged a breach involving over 300,000 records. 

Screenshots shared by cybersecurity firm Vecert Analyzer and other X accounts showed a hacker using the alias “xorcat” claiming access to user profiles, wallet data, and addresses.

Polymarket dismissed the allegation, calling it “complete and utter nonsense,” and said the information cited is publicly accessible through its APIs and on-chain data. 

“Part of the beauty of being on chain is all our data is publicly auditable, this is a feature, not a bug,” the company stated, adding that no private data had been leaked.

The individual behind the claim said the data was obtained through undocumented API endpoints, pagination bypass, and CORS misconfiguration, while also stating an intention to release additional data.