Onyx Odds raises $20 million in round led by Payward
Onyx Odds raised $20 million in a Series A funding round led by Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, at a $220 million valuation. The sports betting app will compete in the prediction markets space against dominant market leaders Kalshi and Polymarket. Payward operates as both a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant and a CFTC-designated designated contract market for prediction markets, a combination the companies frame as innovative for the regulated prediction market space. The funding comes as prediction market firms seek to distinguish themselves from traditional sportsbooks by presenting event contracts.
Onyx Odds now must convert its $220 million valuation into a live product before Kalshi's IPO and Cboe's S&P 500 launch capture the remaining retail and institutional attention. Its reliance on Payward's dual CFTC registration gives it a faster path to market than startups building from scratch.
Onyx Odds joins Kalshi, Polymarket, FanDuel Predicts, and Cboe in the crowded push to launch CFTC-regulated prediction-market products, as each newcomer races to secure exchange partnerships and regulatory positioning before the field consolidates.