Polymarket Seeks CFTC Approval to Reopen Main Prediction Market to U.S. Traders

Polymarket is seeking Commodity Futures Trading Commission approval to lift restrictions that have kept U.S. users from accessing its main, overseas prediction market since 2022, according to multiple reports.

“Polymarket is in active talks with the U”

Bitcoin News

CoinDesk says Polymarket “is seeking approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to bring its main prediction market back to U.S. users,” and adds that the company has discussed lifting its ban with CFTC officials “in recent weeks,” citing Bloomberg.

Bitcoin News

Cointelegraph similarly reports that “Polymarket pushes for broader US relaunch with CFTC talks,” framing the effort as part of a broader push to return to the U.S. market.

Cointelegraph also notes that “Wisconsin’s top law enforcement official on April 23 filed a lawsuit against Kalshi and Polymarket,” alongside companies including Coinbase, Robinhood and Crypto.com, alleging the firms facilitate illegal sports betting through “event contracts.”

In parallel, Cointelegraph reports that “the CFTC and Justice Department last week accused a US soldier of using classified information to make more than $400,000 on Polymarket’s international exchange,” accessed via a VPN.

The push for a full return is also described as a separate, larger ask than Polymarket’s prior intermediated access, with Cryptopolitan stating that Polymarket “already has CFTC approval to operate in the US,” but that today’s request is to bring “its actual main exchange to US users.”

The reports trace Polymarket’s U.S. path through a 2022 enforcement settlement, subsequent restructuring, and a later domestic relaunch that has not matched the scale of its main offshore platform.

Cointelegraph says Polymarket “barred U.S. users after reaching a settlement with the CFTC in 2022,” and Bloombergreported talks are described as aiming to “lift[] restrictions that prevent U.S. users from accessing the platform,” according to bloomingbit.

bloomingbit

Cryptopolitan provides the regulatory timeline in more detail, stating that Polymarket “paid a $1.4 million CFTC fine in 2022 and agreed to exit the US market for running an unregistered derivatives exchange,” and that it “spent the next three years building internationally.”

Cryptopolitan also says the CFTC and DOJ “dropped their separate investigations into Polymarket in July 2025 without new charges,” and then within days Polymarket spent “$112 million acquiring QCEX, a CFTC-licensed exchange and clearinghouse.”

Cryptopolitan adds that Intercontinental Exchange, owner of the New York Stock Exchange, “committed up to $2 billion the same month, eventually completing roughly $1.64 billion in direct investment,” and that “By February 2026 Polymarket was valued at $9 billion.”

Across the accounts, the central point is that Polymarket’s workaround has not fully launched or has not reached the same liquidity, with Cryptopolitan stating that “that effort has failed to fully launch,” and CoinDesk noting that the “CFTC cleared a separate U.S.-only Polymarket platform last November” but “That site has yet to fully launch.”

The CFTC’s enforcement posture is closely tied to the Polymarket return effort, with multiple reports describing a recent insider trading complaint involving event contracts and classified information.

“Polymarket reportedly seeking CFTC approval to reopen main exchange to U”

CoinDesk

Cointelegraph says “the CFTC and Justice Department last week accused a US soldier of using classified information to make more than $400,000 on Polymarket’s international exchange,” adding that authorities said he accessed the platform “via a VPN, in violation of US restrictions.”

Cryptopolitan identifies the defendant as “Gannon Van Dyke, a US Army service member from North Carolina,” and states that the CFTC alleges he used “classified information from a military operation known as Operation Absolute Resolve” to purchase “over 436,000 ‘Yes’ shares” on a Polymarket contract tied to “the removal of Nicolás Maduro,” “clearing over $400,000 in profit.”

Cryptopolitan also says the CFTC confirmed it was “the first time the agency used what regulators call the ‘Eddie Murphy Rule’, the prohibition on trading based on misappropriated government information, to bring event contract charges.”

CoinDesk similarly frames the talks as following “a high-profile insider trading case on the platform,” and says Polymarket “declined to comment.”

In the background of the CFTC’s decision-making, bloomingbit highlights that the outcome “could hinge on Chair Michael Selig, with four commissioner seats currently vacant,” and that “Removing the restrictions on U.S. users would require a formal CFTC vote.”

The Polymarket relaunch push is framed as both a competitive and procedural contest inside the U.S. regulatory system, with Kalshi repeatedly appearing as the main rival and with CFTC staffing vacancies shaping the decision path.

Cointelegraph says Polymarket “has been steadily losing share to Kalshi since September 2025,” while also noting that “Kalshi outstripping Polymarket in volumes” does not remove legal scrutiny from either platform.

Cointelegraph

CoinDesk describes the competitive stakes directly, saying that if Polymarket’s main exchange is reopened “it would help Polymarket compete with Kalshi in the U.S., and bring more event-trading activity under CFTC regulatory oversight.”

CoinDesk also emphasizes the voting mechanics, stating that “The CFTC must vote on the matter, a process simplified by four vacant seats,” leaving Chairman Michael Selig as the key decision-maker.

Cointelegraph further notes that “Wisconsin’s top law enforcement official on April 23 filed a lawsuit against Kalshi and Polymarket,” alleging “event contracts,” and that the suit includes “Coinbase, Robinhood and Crypto.com.”

Event Horizon’s Q1 earnings roundup adds that Robinhood is preparing “the Q2 launch of our JV with Susquehanna,” and quotes CEO Vlad Tenev saying, “we’re really spending time getting ready for the Q2 launch of our JV with Susquehanna.”

The sources describe Polymarket’s next steps as both regulatory and technical, with the CFTC decision determining whether the company can move from a workaround to a fully operational U.S. exchange and whether its main offshore platform can be accessed directly by Americans.

“Skip to content * Polymarket Seeks CFTC Approval to Open Main Exchange to US Traders By Anush Jafer Updated: April 29 2026 3:51 AM UTC 4 mins read 934794 Contents 1”

Cryptopolitan

Cryptopolitan says Polymarket is “in CFTC talks to bring its main international exchange to US traders for the first time since 2022,” and frames the request as “permission to bring its actual main exchange to US users, the same platform the rest of the world trades on.”

Event Horizon

CoinDesk similarly says the ban has been in place since Polymarket reached a 2022 settlement and that the CFTC would need to vote before it could remove the U.S. block.

bloomingbit adds that “Whether Polymarket is approved to operate in the U.S. could hinge on Chair Michael Selig,” and that “Removing the restrictions on U.S. users would require a formal CFTC vote.”

Alongside the regulatory push, The Crypto Times says Polymarket “officially rolled out a much-anticipated CLOB v2 upgrade” after “one hour of planned downtime,” and describes “pUSD (Polymarket USD), an ERC-20 token pegged to USDC at 1:1 on the Polygon network.”

La Presse places the effort in a wider policy context, saying “Two government decisions in the span of a few days pave the way for this convergence of crypto and online betting,” and that Polymarket’s access had been “barred to American internet users since 2022.”