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Analysis · Prediction markets

How does Polymarket work? Who owns it, how it makes money, its fees and how shares pay out

Published 2026-10-28By the CryptoGuardz Register Desk6 min read20 sources

Photo: Maxim Klimashin / Unsplash

In short, from the documents

How does Polymarket work?

Polymarket users trade Yes and No shares priced between $0 and $1 against each other, and a winning share pays $1. The international site settles through the UMA oracle and blocks US trading, while Polymarket US is a CFTC-designated exchange. Polymarket earns taker fees; founder Shayne Coplan runs it, and ICE has invested $1 billion plus $600 million.

Piece published 2026-10-28Reviewed by CryptoGuardz Register Desk, editorial desk

Polymarket works as a peer-to-peer market in Yes and No shares priced between $0 and $1. A winning share pays $1.00 and a losing share $0. Users trade with each other, not against a house, and Polymarket charges takers a fee. Founder Shayne Coplan runs it, and Intercontinental Exchange, owner of the NYSE, has invested $1 billion plus $600 million.

Documents read on 28 October 2026: Polymarket's docs and help centre, the Polymarket US docs, the CFTC designation order, two ICE releases and Coplan's posts on X. Not legal or financial advice.

How does Polymarket work?

Each market is a question with a Yes share and a No share. Polymarket's docs say "Every share on Polymarket is priced between $0.00 and $1.00" and that the price "directly represents the market's belief in the probability of that outcome." A Yes at 60 cents reads as a 60% chance.

The two sides always add up to a dollar. In the docs' example a buyer of Yes at $0.60 and a buyer of No at $0.40 match because "$0.60 + $0.40 = $1.00", and "1 pUSD of collateral creates a complete set". pUSD is the trading token: "a standard ERC-20 backed by USDC", on the Polygon network.

The docs say "Prices aren't set by Polymarket". The price shown is the midpoint of the bid and ask, or the last trade "If the spread is wider than $0.10".

What is the difference between polymarket.com and Polymarket US?

They are two venues with different rules. polymarket.com is the international, crypto-based site. Its own terms page says "This international platform is not regulated by the CFTC and operates independently" and "Trading is blocked in the United States on polymarket.com." The help centre, updated 14 August 2026, lists the United States among the countries that "are completely restricted from accessing Polymarket". Its text says 39 countries, though the table beneath lists 40.

Status table: polymarket.com is not CFTC-regulated, blocks US trading and resolves through the UMA Optimistic Oracle; Polymarket US has been a CFTC designated contract market since 9 July 2025, trades in US dollars and resolves markets itself. — The two Polymarket venues are run by different entities under different rules. Graphic: CryptoGuardz, from the sources cited below, CC BY 4.0

Shayne Coplan 🦅@shayne_coplan

Polymarket has acquired QCEX, a CFTC-regulated exchange and clearinghouse, for $112 million. This paves the way for us to welcome American traders again. I've waited a long time to say this: Polymarket is coming home 🇺🇸🦅

21 July 2025View on XPolymarket's founder announcing the purchase of QCEX, the exchange that became Polymarket US.

Polymarket US is the regulated one. The CFTC's amended order says that on 9 July 2025 the Commission designated QCX LLC, which "now operates under the business name Polymarket US", as a contract market. Its docs describe a "designated contract market (DCM) and derivatives clearing organization (DCO) under CFTC oversight" where "All trading is conducted in US dollars".

	polymarket.com	Polymarket US
Operator status	Not CFTC-regulated	QCX LLC, CFTC DCM
Designated	Not applicable	9 July 2025
US trading	Blocked	Yes
Money	pUSD, backed by USDC	US dollars
Resolution	UMA Optimistic Oracle	The exchange
Taker fee rate	0 to 0.07 by category	0.0695

Which states Polymarket US serves, and which states have sued it, is in Is Polymarket legal in the US?. The full country list for the international site is in Polymarket restricted countries.

How do Polymarket markets resolve and pay out?

On polymarket.com, through the UMA Optimistic Oracle. Anyone can propose the result by posting a bond of "typically $750 pUSD". Then "there's a 2-hour challenge period where anyone can dispute the outcome." With no dispute, the market resolves about 2 hours after the proposal.

A dispute needs a matching bond. A second dispute sends the question to a vote of UMA token holders, which takes about 48 hours; a disputed resolution takes 4 to 6 days in all. When it settles, "Winning tokens become redeemable for $1.00 each" and losing tokens are worth $0.00. A market resolved as unknown or 50-50 pays $0.50 a token.

Polymarket US uses no oracle. Its docs say "the Exchange determines the result using publicly verifiable information" from the sources named in each market's rules, and "All resolutions are final in accordance with the Polymarket US Exchange Rulebook." Winning shares settle at $1.00. Getting the money out afterwards is covered in Polymarket withdrawal time.

What are Polymarket fees?

Takers pay and makers do not on polymarket.com. The formula is "fee = C × feeRate × p × (1 - p)", where C is shares and p the price, and the docs say "Makers are never charged fees." The taker rates on 28 October 2026:

Crypto: 0.07
Sports, economics, culture, weather, other, combos: 0.05
Finance, politics, mentions, tech: 0.04
Geopolitics: 0

So 100 sports shares at 50 cents cost 0.05 x 100 x 0.25 = $1.25 in fees. The docs say there are "no Polymarket fees to deposit or withdraw USDC", though onramps may charge.

Polymarket US runs one schedule, effective 19 October 2026: "Fee = Θ × C × p × (1 - p)" with a taker Θ of 0.0695, or 0.10 on table tennis. The same 100 contracts at 50 cents cost 0.0695 x 25 = $1.7375, which its banker's rounding to the nearest cent makes $1.74. Makers get a rebate of 0.0035 to 0.0104 by volume tier, with none below $10 million a month. Side-by-side examples against Kalshi are in Polymarket and Kalshi fees explained.

How does Polymarket make money?

From taker fees, on the documents published. Neither Polymarket nor ICE discloses revenue in the pages read: not disclosed. Part of the fee goes back out. On polymarket.com the Maker Rebates Program returns 20% of taker fees to makers in crypto, 15% in sports and 25% in the other fee-charging categories, paid daily in pUSD with a $1 minimum. Polymarket says the rebate percentage "may change over time."

How the two US exchanges compare on fees, markets and state lawsuits is in Polymarket vs Kalshi.

Who owns Polymarket?

The sources read do not give a full ownership breakdown. Shayne Coplan runs the company, and ICE is an outside investor. ICE's release of 7 October 2025 names Shayne Coplan as "Founder and CEO of Polymarket" and says "ICE will invest up to $2 billion in Polymarket, reflecting a valuation of approximately $8 billion pre-investment." Coplan's own post that day put it at "$9 billion post-money".

Timeline: CFTC designation of QCX LLC on 9 July 2025, Coplan's post on the $112 million QCEX acquisition on 21 July 2025, ICE's announcement of up to $2 billion on 7 October 2025 and its new $600 million investment on 27 March 2026. — ICE says its first payment in October 2025 was $1 billion; its percentage stake is not disclosed. Graphic: CryptoGuardz, from the sources cited below, CC BY 4.0

NYSE-owner Intercontinental Exchange takes $2 billion stake in PolymarketVideo by CNBC Television on YouTube. Watch on YouTubeA CNBC Television report on the ICE investment announced on 7 October 2025, the deal this section reads from ICE's own releases.

Shayne Coplan 🦅@shayne_coplan

Markets on everything. We’re proud to announce that $ICE, the owner of @NYSE and the largest exchange company in the world, is making a strategic investment of $2 billion into Polymarket, valuing us at $9 billion post-money. Our partnership with ICE marks a major step in…

7 October 2025View on XThe founder's announcement of the ICE investment, with the post-money valuation he gave the same day ICE published its release.

ICE's release of 27 March 2026 says "In October 2025, ICE made an initial direct investment in Polymarket of $1 billion" and that "ICE has completed a new $600 million direct cash investment in Polymarket". It also expects to buy up to $40 million of Polymarket securities from existing holders. Neither release states ICE's percentage stake, and the valuation of the March round was to be disclosed later: not disclosed.

The US exchange came by acquisition. On 21 July 2025 Coplan wrote on X:

Polymarket has acquired QCEX, a CFTC-regulated exchange and clearinghouse, for $112 million.

Shayne Coplan on X, 21 July 2025

No Polymarket press release or CFTC filing confirming the price or the closing date was found: not verified beyond Coplan's post.

Can you parlay on Polymarket?

Yes, under the name Combos. Polymarket's own market page is titled "Parlays Predictions & Real-Time Odds", and its help centre says "A Combo lets you bundle multiple market positions into a single trade." The payout "is calculated by multiplying the implied probabilities of each leg together", and "If any leg of your Combo resolves incorrectly, the entire Combo is lost." On polymarket.com combos "are currently available on sports markets only (moneyline, spread, and total)", at the 0.05 combo fee rate.

Polymarket US offers combos too. Its FAQ says "A combo combines 2 to 10 markets into a single position." The taker fee there uses a steeper curve, and the schedule says "Combo fills carry no maker rebate." The fee schedule read on 28 October 2026 says the coefficient on the (1 - p)^4 term of the combo formula rises from 0.06 to 0.085 from 10:00 PM ET on 28 October 2026. The combo pages read for this article do not use the word parlay.

Quick answers

Who owns Polymarket?

Founder and CEO Shayne Coplan runs it. ICE invested $1 billion in October 2025 and $600 million in March 2026; its stake is not disclosed.

What are Polymarket fees?

Takers on polymarket.com pay a rate of 0 to 0.07 by category, and makers pay nothing. Polymarket US charges takers 0.0695. Worked examples are in the fees post.

Can you parlay on Polymarket?

Yes. Polymarket calls them Combos: sports only on polymarket.com, 2 to 10 legs on Polymarket US. One losing leg loses the whole combo.

Where can I get help with gambling in the US?

The National Problem Gambling Helpline is 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), with call, text and chat. More options are on the responsible gambling page.

More analysis

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Sources

About this piece

Compiled by the CryptoGuardz register team from the sources listed above. Research and drafting are AI-assisted and reviewed by a named editor before publication. Nothing here is a recommendation to gamble. If a figure or a reading is wrong, tell us and the correction is logged in public.

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