Badge Wars End as Prediction Markets Adjust Strategies
Kalshi ended its X affiliate program on Monday evening.
Badge holders were notified that they had been removed from Kalshi Traders affiliate program. The affected traders were being reviewed for premium verification and a blue checkmark.
Kalshi chose to end its affiliate program after X raised concerns about affiliate spam. X’s head of product Nikita Bier posted a meme comparing “a world without prediction market spam” to a futuristic utopia on Thursday. He also told Infodex to disclose previously undisclosed Kalshi ads.
Kalshi did not respond to a request for comment. The company told Front Office Sports that the badges had become “too difficult to police” and “people often confused badged accounts with Kalshi-endorsed messages.”
Zero Super Cycle badges ended
Polymarket removed Zero Super Cycle affiliate badges on Monday evening, too. Zero Super Cycle is a community of Polymarket builders and influencers that aims to “bring Polymarket into the everyday lexicon.”
In response to a Prediction News announcing the end of Kalshi’s affiliate program, Bier posted another meme of a grim reaper knocking on a closed door. He seemed to be implying that Polymarket’s affiliate badges could be the next to “raise concerns.”
DEVELOPING: Head of Product at X @nikitabier posts cryptic tweet in response to our post showing that Polymarket liked the post that showed Kalshi removing all their affiliate badges https://t.co/qXY3qH0MJ4
— Prediction News (@PredictionNews_) February 24, 2026
Polymarket Trader and Polymarket badges have remained live. Polymarket did not respond to a request for comment.
Kalshi and Polymarket previously competed for influencers, especially as Kalshi pushed into the crypto space to attract more crypto users.
Early influencer strategy
X was the central platform during the prediction market badge wars. Throughout fall 2025, Kalshi and Polymarket launched affiliate badge programs with major influencers on X. Polymarket partnered with Evie, and Kalshi partnered with Aggie, two influential influencers in the prediction market industry.
Both platforms also partnered with traders. Kalshi partnered with PMT, while Polymarket partnered with crypto accounts like wale.moca and SHL0MS.
Beyond professional traders and content creators, both platforms also partnered with X accounts that boosted prediction markets more broadly. Many of these accounts became known for spam posting to earn the badges, and others lost their badges for content violations.
While many affiliate badges have disappeared, both Kalshi and Polymarket have made enormous strides toward mainstreaming their platforms and building large audiences. Both companies have secured media partnerships and become more recognizable by institutional companies.
Affiliate badges are no longer an urgent way to gain brand awareness.