Polymarket is looking to hire for an internal market-making team that could engage in trades against users on its platform.
Recently, the firm has reached out to traders—including sports bettors—about joining the team, as reported by Bloomberg on Thursday, citing knowledgeable sources.
This move comes as Polymarket enhances its US operations after settling regulatory issues from a 2022 case, in which it paid a $1.4 million fine to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Kalshi, a competitor of Polymarket, already has an internal unit called Kalshi Trading, which places bids on its exchange to enhance liquidity. This setup has faced criticism from some users, and a proposed class-action lawsuit filed last month claims the desk sets betting lines that put customers at a disadvantage.
Both Polymarket and Kalshi have sought external participants to provide liquidity on their platforms. At Kalshi, firms like Susquehanna International Group have taken on market-making roles.
Cointelegraph reached out to Polymarket for a comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.
Related: Polymarket is opening US app to waitlisted users after CFTC green light
Coinbase CEO’s take on prediction markets
Prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi have seen considerable growth in recent years, with both firms forming new partnerships and attaining high private-market valuations as the sector develops.
The platforms allow users to wager on a variety of events, from sports to forecasting the next day’s weather in New York City.
At The New York Times’ DealBook Summit on Thursday, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong argued that prediction market trading desks could enhance the accuracy of these markets.
“If your goal is for the 99% of the people trying to get a signal about what’s going to happen in the world […] you actually want insider trading,” he stated, adding that traders would gain from “really good information” and “get a higher quality signal out of them.”
He continued:
“Now, if you want to preserve the integrity of those markets, maybe you don’t want insider trading. So there might be like a decentralization test that has to go in here, but it’s not a clear cut answer.”
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who also took part in the discussion, was less optimistic about prediction markets.
“We try to help people navigate a 30-year outcome,” Fink noted. “I don’t really care about what happens in the next moment. I’m aware in the betting market, in football, you can bet every play, but to me, this is not how I’m going to live my life.”
In the third quarter of 2024, prediction markets saw a combined volume across the three largest platforms increase by 565% to $3.1 billion, up from $463.3 million in the previous quarter.
Magazine: When privacy and AML laws conflict: Crypto projects’ impossible choice
