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JPMorgan Chase terminated its banking relationship with Polymarket last year over regulatory concerns, underscoring enduring cautious sentiment towards prediction markets.
JPMorgan notified Polymarket that it needed to find a new bank in October, according to people familiar with the matter. Polymarket is now working with a new lender, the name of which could not be learnt.
At the time, Polymarket was banned from allowing US customers to use its platform following a 2022 enforcement action by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for operating an unregistered derivatives trading platform.
The CFTC under the Trump administration allowed New York-based Polymarket to re-enter the US last year, though the agency has an ongoing investigation into the company, the FT reported in June.
JPMorgan has still maintained some ties with Polymarket, notably inviting chief executive Shayne Coplan to speak at a conference for wealthy private banking clients in Miami in February alongside ex-NFL star Tom Brady, according to people familiar with the matter.
The bank is keen to stay in the running for an underwriting role should Polymarket attempt to go public. “They don’t want to burn all their bridges,” said one person close to the prediction platform.
JPMorgan declined to comment. Polymarket said it continued to do business with the bank in other ways, maintaining “a close, active relationship with JPMorgan across multiple entities, operational integrations and material handling of customer fund flows”.
“Any suggestion otherwise fundamentally mischaracterises our relationship,” the platform said.
The move by JPMorgan highlights the struggles fast-growing companies in nascent industries can face in securing banking services. It also points to the wary approach some large banks are taking regarding prediction markets, which have helped to create a speculative economy where virtually any event can be wagered upon.
The growth of prediction markets has attracted regulatory scrutiny. In addition to the CFTC action in 2022, more than a dozen US states have also taken legal action against Polymarket and rival Kalshi for allegedly operating unlawful sportsbooks. The companies argue they are exchanges that match two different sides of a bet, rather than a bookmaker that takes the other side of a wager.
There have also been concerns about insiders with advanced knowledge of events trading on prediction markets. Notably, a US soldier involved in planning the country’s January raid to seize Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro was charged in April with placing Polymarket wagers on the mission that netted more than $400,000. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, the soldier, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The issue of “debanking” — customers losing banking access — has become a hot-button political issue in the US after prominent tech investors claimed crypto businesses they backed had struggled to obtain the services.
The US government is investigating several large banks including JPMorgan over whether they provided fair access. Donald Trump has also sued the bank and its chief executive Jamie Dimon for allegedly closing his accounts for political reasons. JPMorgan has said the suit has no merit.
Banks say they are subject to a regulatory regime that can create legal risks for sensitive accounts.
Prediction markets have grown rapidly in the US, building on a boom in betting following a 2018 Supreme Court ruling that allowed states to legalise sports gambling.
These prediction platforms, which are not regulated as betting companies, allow punters to place bets on everything from sports games to election results and the future price of oil. Prediction markets have generated more than $250bn in notional trading volume so far in 2026, according to user-compiled data on crypto-analytics platform Dune.
Polymarket is seeking to raise more than $1bn at a valuation of $20bn, which would be more than double the roughly $8bn it was worth in a 2025 fundraising round.
Additional reporting by Stephanie Stacey
