On March 27, 2026, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the owner of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), confirmed the completion of its second tranche investment in Polymarket with a direct cash infusion of USD 600 million. The play was made following ICE’s previous investment of USD 1 billion in Polymarket in October 2025, doubling down on the prediction markets trading industry.
ICE Deepens Its Stake in Prediction Markets
The investment in Polymarket hardens ICE’s commitment to the rapidly growing prediction market sector. In addition, ICE expects to buy Polymarket securities from select existing holders for up to USD 40 million, completing its total obligations related to this investment deal. The exact valuation of the latest investment will be disclosed after Polymarket concludes its subsequent fundraising.
Polymarket has gained traction over the past two years within the emerging market of event-based trading. Combined volumes on Polymarket and rival Kalshi surged to USD 18 billion in February 2026, up more than ninefold from August 2025 levels.
Participants can trade on events occurring across a wide array of subject matter, including political, economic, sports, cultural events, and more. To have an idea, in the image below, the contract (“Will the US strike Iran by Feb 28, 2026?”), captured USD 89 million in trading volume (largest geopolitical contract in Polymarket’s history). Furthermore, the second image displays a table with trending markets by volume for February 2026, according to the current geopolitical situation.
Ascending Market
ICE is a large exchange and clearinghouse that operates on a global scale, and its investment in Polymarket is a strategy that shows ICE believes that prediction markets will be an important part of the overall infrastructure used to support modern financial markets. Additionally, several other large centralized exchanges (CEXs) like Gate.io, Coinbase, MEXC, and decentralized exchange (DEX) Hyperliquid have also launched prediction market products on their platforms.
The Main Point
The ICE’s USD 1.6 billion investment in Polymarket helps to demonstrate that prediction markets constitute a legitimate asset class that institutional and aggressive investors may consider adding to their portfolios. ICE is effectively helping to anchor the largest platform in the prediction market space, where “uncertainty turns into price,” a space poised for further growth as geopolitical and economic volatility drives demand for event-based hedging.
