DraftKings launches in-house DKeX exchange, ending Crypto.com and CME partnerships
DraftKings launched DKeX, its in-house prediction markets exchange, on June 26, integrating it directly into its unified Sports & Casino app. The move ends partnerships with Crypto.com and CME Group that had routed DraftKings' event-contract trades since December 2025. DKeX is CFTC-regulated and built on Railbird Technologies. The platform is reporting $3.4 billion in annualized volume. Bernstein analysts said the launch reflects a broader push toward operational consolidation in prediction markets.
DraftKings' vertical integration removes the white-label middlemen that Novig and smaller rivals still depend on. The $3.4 billion run-rate signals that a sportsbook can own the full stack — exchange, customer, and liquidity — without third-party rails. For Crypto.com and CME, it is a lost revenue line that may not be replaced as other platforms follow DraftKings' lead.
Kalshi and Polymarket now face a competitor with 50 million registered users and a marketing budget that dwarfs theirs. The next test is whether DraftKings can hold spreads tight enough to keep that volume from bleeding back to established venues when the NFL season opens.
DraftKings joins the CFTC-registered exchange tier alongside Kalshi, Polymarket, and Novig, as the major sportsbook operators abandon white-label partnerships for proprietary prediction-market infrastructure.