Matchbook Ready to Strike With US Sports Exchange After UK Trial
Sports betting exchange Matchbook is launching a UK prediction market platform in January in anticipation of a 2026 US launch. For the US product, the Guernsey-based operator is teaming up with RSBIX, which is currently awaiting federal regulatory approval to offer prediction markets nationwide.
Matchbook interim CEO Ronan McDonagh told Bloomberg that the UK launch is a “road test” for the forthcoming US platform. He also said that he expects US regulatory approval by as soon as March.
The new UK prediction platform will still be focused on sports. Bloomberg reports that the difference between the new product and Matchbook’s long-running, peer-to-peer sports betting exchange is largely presentational. While the existing Matchbook exchange shows fractional odds for each market, the traditional format used by British bookmakers, the new platform will show odds as a percentage, the standard for prediction market exchanges like Kalshi and Polymarket.
“It’s not new in the sense that it works on the same engine as an exchange,” McDonagh said. “It should be more understandable, so I think we’re hopeful that it captures a new audience or it intrigues people to have a look.”
Matchbook US platform to use Polymarket Clearing
RSBIX was founded by noted gaming lawyer and lobbyist Jeff Ifrah, who also serves as the company’s CEO. In September, RSBIX applied with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for approval as a Designated Contract Market (DCM), which would allow it to self-certify event contracts and offer them in all 50 states if approved.
Shortly after its CFTC filings, Ifrah told Prediction News that he was “hoping to have approvals and a launch date in six months time,” which aligns with McDonagh’s stated March approval timeline.
Ifrah also said RSBIX has a “perpetual license to the (Matchbook) product,” but it’s unclear whether the US platform will operate under the Matchbook name. McDonagh told Bloomberg the company was “not sentimental about going in as Matchbook.”
“We’ve been in the exchange business so long and we’ve got a really strong tech platform,” McDonagh said. “We’ve got strong market making partners, liquidity and a great product. We’ll be able to compete on day one in the US.”
RSBIX’s CFTC filings say it intends to use QC Clearing LLC to provide third-party clearing services for the platform. QC Clearing was acquired by Polymarket earlier this year when it purchased QCEX, a CFTC-approved DCM. The acquisitions cleared the way for Polymarket’s re-entry into the US market.
DraftKings’ forthcoming prediction market exchange will use the same clearinghouse, which is now called Polymarket Clearing.
CFTC yet to approve a sports-focused prediction platform
The RSBIX holding page states that the company’s vision is “to become the most trusted sports event trading platform in the United States.” While the top US prediction market platforms offer sports event contracts (they are the leading trade volume driver at Kalshi), the CFTC has yet to approve a predominantly sports-focused exchange as a DCM.
Several states are currently embroiled in legal battles with platforms like Kalshi and Crypto.com over their right to offer sports event contract trading in their jurisdictions. The states have been arguing in court that trading sports contracts amounts to sports betting, for which they have oversight. The prediction platforms say federal regulatory oversight by the CFTC should supersede (or preempt) state gaming laws. Many expect a resolution to come via the Supreme Court, though that could be years away from materializing.
Another possible sports-focused prediction exchange that could receive DCM approval from the CFTC is ProphetX, which currently operates as a sports betting exchange in more than 35 states. The platform doesn’t have state operational approval, as it functions as a sweepstakes gaming site, whereby users trade using free virtual currency that is obtainable through promotions and purchases and is redeemable for cash prizes.
With states like California and New York passing legislation banning sweepstakes gaming platforms, ProphetX is attempting to pivot to prediction markets and offer real-money sports event contract trading. The company announced in November that it had applied for approval from the CFTC as both a DCM and clearinghouse. The filings recently surfaced in the CFTC DCM portal, which resumed operations last month following the end of the 43-day government shutdown.
Big day at ProphetX. 📈
We’ve officially filed with the @CFTC to become a Designated Contract Market and Derivatives Clearing Organization.
The first step toward launching a regulated, sports-native prediction market in the U.S.
Here’s what that means👇 https://t.co/SUWoy0cAUz pic.twitter.com/JhWsKiznDH
— ProphetX (@PlayProphetX) November 10, 2025