Polymarket US tests CFTC-certified parlays in API-only beta
Polymarket's regulated U.S. exchange has begun beta testing parlay contracts that let users bundle multiple sports event contracts into a single wager. The platform self-certified the product with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in May and processed its first multi-leg trade on Aug. 5. The feature is currently available only through an API. The test launch follows the earlier rollout of parlays on Polymarket's offshore platform.
Parlays carry higher expected revenue per trade than single-leg contracts, so Polymarket is chasing the same fee economics that drove Kalshi's $25 million event-contract haul. The product also tightens the race with Novig, whose 47-state launch just reset the scale bar for regulated sports prediction markets. API-only access means institutional tooling comes before retail rollout, which signals Polymarket is wooing volume traders first.
If parlays attract the bot and market-maker ecosystem that single-leg contracts have not, Kalshi and Novig will face pressure to match the feature before retail demand hardens around a leader. The CFTC certification in May gives Polymarket a three-month head start that narrows if competitors self-certify their own multi-leg products this quarter. FanDuel Predicts' clearing overhaul shows how infrastructure choices are already separating platforms that can scale from those stuck in pilot mode.