Kalshi has added three million new users during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the prediction market platform told CNBC. Trading volumes across the platform also surged alongside the tournament.
More than $1.2 billion has traded on Kalshi’s contract predicting the World Cup winner, a record for a single market on the platform. That market closed Sunday, when Spain beat Argentina in the final, 1-0.
Kalshi leaned on soccer’s global reach to fuel the surge. Vijay Viswanathan, associate dean of integrated marketing communications at Northwestern University, said football’s presence in nearly every country gives it an addressable market few other events can match.
The platform partnered with ADI Predictstreet, FIFA’s official prediction market sponsor, for stadium co-branding deals during the tournament. Meanwhile, it also worked with OpenAI to surface its odds inside ChatGPT searches, alongside campaigns featuring soccer stars Luka Modric and Jose Mourinho, plus a partnership with the Argentina national team.
Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour said the strategy prioritizes speed and relevance over volume alone.
“Our volumes are where the news is at.”
— Tarek Mansour, CNBC
Despite the popularity, and the boom from the World Cup, predictions markets carry regulatory risk. Sports event contracts remain caught in a dispute between the federal government and several states, which argue the contracts function as sports betting. That fight has already produced a CFTC lawsuit against Kentucky this year.
In contrast, Brian Sung, a partner at law firm Haynes Boone, said the marketing push does not sway how courts might rule, but it shapes how regulators and the public view prediction markets.
Other bettors have felt the swings too. One Polymarket trader lost $11.6 million on World Cup wagers in early July, while rapper Drake has a five million dollar wager riding on Sunday’s final.
Kalshi now faces a familiar test. Volume drops on days without matches, a pattern Mansour said has repeated after past major events.
He expects fresh catalysts, not a slowdown, to keep prediction market volume climbing once the World Cup ends.
The post Kalshi Adds 3 Million Users During FIFA World Cup Boom appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Reference: GitHub PancakeSwap Releases ERC-8183 AI Settlement Agent As DeFi Automation Gets More Serious PancakeSwap has released an open-source ERC-8183 AI settlement agent, giving developers
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Key takeaways:Bitcoin futures and options show whales still prefer hedging downside risks as socio-economic risks mount.Rising Treasury yields and declines in AI stocks fuel risk aversion, yet BTC’s strength signals continued decoupling.Bitcoin (BTC) showed relative strength over the past week, despite failing to break above $65,500. More importantly, the cryptocurrency has decoupled from traditional markets as investors took profits in memory-chip makers amid fears of excessive valuations in the artificial intelligence sector. Still, judging by Bitcoin’s derivative metrics, top traders are not particularly confident about a rally toward $70,000.Bitcoin perpetual futures annualized funding rate. Source: LaevitasThe Bitcoin perpetual futures annualized funding rate stood at a neutral 8% mark on Monday, flat from one week prior. Excessive demand for bullish leverage drives the indicator above the 12% level, which last occurred on July 10. It is unclear if Bitcoin traders’ lack of optimism is somewhat related to contagion fears from the sell-off in tech stocks or the war in Iran.Nasdaq-100 futures (left) vs. Bitcoin/USD (right). Source: TradingViewThe tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 Index dropped below 28,800 on Friday for the first time in five weeks, while Bitcoin displayed strength over the weekend and eventually broke above $65,000 on Monday. Strategy announced a successful raise of $263 million in cash by selling common stock during the prior week, easing concerns of potential Bitcoin sell pressure.Investors became extremely anxious about Strategy’s $1.76 billion annual dividend payout to its preferred perpetual equity shareholders, in addition to the $2.6 billion of convertible debt maturing in 2028 and 2029. By raising cash reserves to a comfortable $3.22 billion, the company hopes to eliminate the uncertainty caused by unrealized Bitcoin losses held in its balance sheet.Bitcoin 30-day options delta skew (put-call) at Deribit. Source: LaevitasThe Bitcoin 30-day options delta skew stood at 13% on Monday, meaning puts (sell) traded at a premium relative to calls (buy). Under neutral conditions, the indicator should range from -6% to +6%. Despite the modest improvement from the prior week’s 19% delta skew, whales and market makers remain reluctant to hold downside price exposure.Bitcoin’s resilience amid AI stocks weakness and increased risk aversionThe sell-off in AI-related stocks has also caused investors to act more risk-averse. The sharp declines in the shares of IBM, SanDisk, Oracle, ARM, SpaceX and Intel coincided with a rally in 5-year US Treasury yields. Traders demanded higher returns to hold government bonds, indicating they anticipate further expansionary monetary measures due to the ongoing fiscal debt issue.Gold/USD (left) vs. US 5-year Treasury yield (right): Source: TradingViewThe US 5-year Treasury yield surged to 4.33% on Monday, up from 4.22% two weeks prior. Curiously, gold prices have been in a downtrend since mid-May, suggesting that no asset class has been immune to the deteriorating global economic growth outlook and ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. On Monday, US President Trump vowed to retaliate against Iran for a missile strike that killed US soldiers in Jordan, putting risk assets on high alert. Bitcoin’s jump to $65,500 strengthens the case for further decoupling from traditional finance markets amid signs of monetary base expansion. Despite a lack of bullishness in BTC derivatives markets, a rally toward $70,000 could be ignited by weak corporate earnings, especially in the AI sector.
Crypto ETF investors spent the week changing direction almost as quickly as the market itself. A sharp Monday retreat gave way to broad inflows across
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