Prediction Markets surge as billions flow into new trading frontier

Institutional access, surging liquidity and growing investor participation could accelerate the transformation of prediction markets into a mainstream financial category

NEW YORK, Aug. 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Market News Updates News Commentary - Prediction markets are gaining traction among investors looking to anticipate significant shifts in financial markets. These platforms enable traders to speculate on real-world outcomes beyond just elections and sports. They are now delving into inflation, interest rates, economic indicators, cryptocurrency prices, and other factors that can impact financial markets directly. In July, Kalshi and Polymarket collectively saw a trading volume of $50.6 billion, marking a new monthly peak for the industry. Active Companies in the trading markets today include: Prospect Prediction Markets Inc. (TSXV: MKT) (OTCQB: MKTSF), Futu Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: FUTU), Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN), Webull (NASDAQ: BULL), TMX Group Limited (TSX: X) (OTC: TMXXF).

The noteworthy development is the entrance of Wall Street into the prediction market arena. Cantor Fitzgerald recently introduced institutional trading in prediction markets, allowing clients to engage in substantial transactions with event contracts on Kalshi. This move eliminates a major barrier that has hindered hedge funds and professional investors from participating in this space: the ability to execute significant trades through established financial-market channels. Analysts at Bernstein predict that prediction markets could potentially reach a trading volume of around $1 trillion annually by the end of the decade.

For investors involved in stocks and cryptocurrencies, this presents a novel approach to trading events that influence the markets. Rather than waiting for a stock to react to economic reports, Federal Reserve decisions, or major announcements, traders can position themselves strategically around these events. Although there are ongoing developments and risks related to regulations and market structures, the trend is clear: prediction markets are transitioning from being a niche online interest to a substantial player in the financial market realm.

Key market takeaways:

$50.6B: Combined Kalshi and Polymarket trading volume in July 2026.

$1T: Bernstein's projected annual prediction-market volume by decade-end.

Institutional money: Cantor Fitzgerald has opened access for institutional clients.

Crypto connection: Prediction contracts increasingly cover crypto and financial-market outcomes.

New asset class: Event contracts could eventually complement stocks, options, futures and crypto.

Prospect Prediction Markets Inc. (TSXV: MKT) (OTCQB: MKTSF) Secures CFTC Introducing Broker License, Unlocking U.S. Market Entry - Prospect Prediction Markets Inc. (FSE: DEP) ("Prospect Markets" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, Prospect Brokerage USA LLC ("Prospect Brokerage"), has been approved for membership with the National Futures Association ("NFA") and registered as an introducing broker with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC").

The membership and registration represent a key milestone in the Company's U.S. market-entry strategy. As a CFTC-registered introducing broker, Prospect Brokerage is authorized to introduce U.S. retail customers to Crypto.com | Derivatives North America ("CDNA"), a CFTC-registered designated contract market and derivatives clearing organization, for the trading of fully-collateralized event contracts, with a primary focus on sports event contracts. Prospect Brokerage is registered as a guaranteed introducing broker pursuant to a guarantee agreement with Foris DAX FCM LLC (operating as OG Broker), a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant and related entity of Crypto.com.

"Registration as an introducing broker gives Prospect direct, regulated access to the U.S. market, the largest opportunity in front of this company," said Johnny Chen, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Prospect Markets. "It is the license that lets us onboard U.S. customers and intermediate their trades on regulated exchanges. With that foundation in place, our focus turns to commercialization."

Registration with the NFA and the CFTC does not constitute an endorsement, recommendation, or approval of Prospect Brokerage USA LLC, Prospect Markets, or their business practices, products, or services by the NFA, the CFTC, or any other regulatory body. Registration signifies only that the registrant has met applicable regulatory requirements to operate. Continued… Read this full release and additional news for Prospect Prediction Markets Inc. by visiting : https://prospectmarkets.com/news

Additional industry news from around the markets include:

Futu Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: FUTU), a leading tech-driven online brokerage and wealth management platform, recently announced its unaudited financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026.

Mr. Leaf Hua Li, Futu’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, “In the second quarter, we added 252 thousand net new funded accounts, bringing total funded accounts to 3.8 million, up 33.6% year-over-year. Growth in funded accounts this quarter was supported by continued momentum across our international markets, reinforcing the diversification of our client base. Malaysia led new funded account additions for the third consecutive quarter. Hong Kong and Singapore followed as key contributors, with new client cohorts in both markets demonstrating stronger initial monetization compared with prior periods, a signal of ongoing quality improvement in our more established markets.”

“Total client assets were HK$1.40 trillion as of quarter end, up 43.6% year-over-year and 14.5% quarter-over-quarter. The growth was mainly attributable to higher market valuation of clients’ stock holdings, and to a lesser extent, net asset inflow. Margin financing and securities lending balance rose 30.5% quarter-over-quarter to HK$95.1 billion, driven by an active Hong Kong IPO market, alongside upbeat sentiment that fueled higher utilization of leverage.”

Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN) - The Coinbase Business payments suite is getting a major upgrade . Your business can now seamlessly accept payments from AI agents using the same Checkout you already use. We’re also introducing reusable payment links, flexible pricing, a product catalog, integrated buyer information collection, and USDT support across the full payments suite. These features reduce manual operations and streamline workflows across your Coinbase Business toolset.

Today, Coinbase Business is expanding its payments suite so businesses can get paid with more flexibility, by more customers, including AI agents.

Coinbase Business now serves more than 5,000 companies. And its payments acceptance suite — payment links, checkouts, and invoices — has already powered more than 100,000 payments across industries, from AI startups and auction houses to law firms and nonprofits. Funds settle instantly, fees stay low, and chargebacks are off the table.

Webull (NASDAQ: BULL), a leading online investment platform, recently announced significant expansions to its AI-powered investing ecosystem, including native connectors for ChatGPT, Claude and Grok, the launch of Webull Command Line Interface (“CLI”), and an enhanced suite of Webull Model Context Protocol (“MCP”) skills. The announcement builds upon Webull's recently launched MCP server, which enables investors to interact with Webull's OpenAPI, market intelligence, account insights, and research tools using natural-language AI prompts.

Together, these innovations enable investors, developers, and AI agents to access Webull's market data, account services, investment research, and developer tools through conversational AI interfaces, automation tools, and developer workflows.

TMX Group Limited (TSX: X) (OTC: TMXXF) recently announced it has completed the acquisition of RAFI Indices, LLC (RAFI Indices) from Research Affiliates Global Holdings, LLC (Research Affiliates), a global index provider and investment advisor. The transaction was announced in June 2026.

The acquisition will significantly expand equity portfolio coverage of TMX VettaFi, a differentiated index provider with modern distribution solutions, and TMX Group subsidiary.

RAFI Indices is an index company founded by Research Affiliates. It specializes in constructing, publishing, and licensing indices that reflect a deep, academically rigorous understanding of the fundamental factors driving capital market returns. The company is renowned for its innovative approach, offering over 90 indices that cater to a diverse range of investment needs worldwide.

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SOURCE: Market News Updates