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Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel crowdfunded the decentralized prediction platform Polymarket with $70 million.
The investment marks an important milestone because it is a prediction platform for culture, technology, news, and politics.
Vitalik Buterin, Peter Thiel Invest $70 Million in Polymarket
Polymarket raised $45 million in a Series B, led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. It also raised $25 million in a second round, led by General Catalyst and Polychain.
CEO Shayne Coplan emphasized that Vitlaik Buterin is among the betting platform’s backers. Buterin has used it to track OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Donald Trump has even used it to analyze his presidential aspirations.
“Coverage of our Series B. We’ve had $202.7m worth of predictions made on Polymarket so far this year. But what’s been most gratifying is seeing the widespread adoption of Polymarket as an alternative news source,” Coplan said.
The election betting market has boosted platforms such as Polymarket, which manages 170 million dollars wagered on events related to the US elections. For instance, Donald Trump leads Polymarket’s polls with 49% of the votes.
“When we think about the US market as well as investing, researching into it, we know that is likely not something that will pay dividends immediately,” Coplan added.
Read more: How To Fund Innovation: A Guide to Web3 Grants
The funding demonstrates the momentum for crypto initiatives in the US despite regulatory setbacks. Indeed, billionaire Tim Draper recently led a $3.5 million seed funding round in Zest Protocol, a Bitcoin lending startup.