Polymarket cuts staff amid US prediction-market competition
People moves2 min read
Polymarket confirmed a restructuring that ended contracts with external collaborators and affected full-time employees, mainly in marketing, customer support and engineering. The company disputed reports that about 30% of its workforce was affected, while reported CFTC checks concern whether US users accessed its offshore platform despite a 2022 agreement.
Polymarket said a restructuring had resulted in redundancies and the termination of contracts with external collaborators. The changes mainly affect marketing, customer support and engineering. A person familiar with the situation said more than half of the positions cut involved external collaborators, while full-time employees were also affected.
An internal message circulated on X said contracts with collaborators would end on 4 November 2026 as part of company-wide staff reductions. Polymarket confirmed the message was authentic. The company disputed reports that about 30% of its workforce was affected, calling the figure inaccurate. It did not disclose the total number of people affected. A Polymarket spokesperson said the restructuring followed company growth and the arrival of new executives, and had involved numerous new hires as well as staff departures.
Warren Jenson, who previously worked at Amazon, was appointed Polymarket's first chief financial officer in September. Travis VanderZanden, a former Uber executive, joined as chief growth officer during 2026.
Kalshi has surpassed Polymarket in monthly trading volume, benefiting from expanded distribution and commercial deals, including one linked to the FIFA World Cup. A funding round announced by Kalshi in late October was worth a billion dollars and valued the company at 40 billion dollars; Sequoia and Wellington led it.
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is examining a possible breach of a 2022 agreement under which Polymarket was to exclude US users from its offshore platform. New York-based Polymarket also operates through a company registered in Panama. The checks concern whether US users accessed that platform in breach of the agreement.