Key Points
- Kalshi, a fintech platform for trading event contracts, expands to over 140 countries after securing $300 million in Series D funding.
- The firm’s trading volume and user base have grown significantly, now accounting for over 60% of global prediction-market activity.
Kalshi’s Expansion and Funding Success
Kalshi, a financial technology platform that allows the trading of event contracts, recently announced its expansion to more than 140 countries. This global growth comes on the heels of a successful Series D funding round, where the firm raised $300 million.
Tarek Mansour, Kalshi’s CEO, revealed that the funding round was led by Sequoia and a16z. Several other participants were involved, including Paradigm, Coinbase Ventures, General Catalyst, CapitalG, Spark, and notable individuals such as Kevin Hart, Kevin Durant, Rich Kleiman, Mantis, and Kevin Yorn.
Growth and Regulatory Challenges
During the Series D round, Kalshi was valued at $5 billion, marking a significant increase from its Series C valuation in June. The company has also seen a surge in its trading volume and user base, which have grown 200X and 20X respectively in the past year. Now, Kalshi accounts for over 60% of global prediction-market activity, a notable feat considering it previously operated only within the US.
Despite its success, Kalshi has faced regulatory challenges, particularly from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). In 2024, the CFTC sought to ban event contracts on sensitive issues. However, with the change in administration in 2025, the regulatory environment seems to have eased for Kalshi.
The current acting CFTC chair is Caroline Pham, who replaced Rostin Behnam. Josh Sterling, a lawyer representing Kalshi, has been named as a potential candidate for the CFTC chair position. Meanwhile, Michael Selig, chief counsel for the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, is reported to be the frontrunner for the role.
