Coinbase Acquires Prediction Markets Startup The Clearing Company

What Is Coinbase purchaseing—and Why Now?

Coinbase has entered a definitive agreement to acquire The Clearing Company, an on-chain prediction markets beginup that lets users trade on outcomes tied to digital assets, politics, sports, and culture. The deal is expected to close in January.

The purchase comes less than a week later than Coinbase said it would enter prediction markets through a partnership with Kalshi and alongside a separate move into stock trading. Taken together, the steps show how rapidly event-based markets have moved from the edges of crypto into the center of .

“The Everything platform is a unified platform to trade crypto, equities, and everything else people want to trade,” Max Branzburg, Coinbase’s vice president of product management, told crypto outlet Cointelegraph. “Prediction markets are an significant part of that platform.”

The Clearing Company is a young firm—founded earlier this year—but it has deep roots in the space. Its founder, Toni Gemayel, previously worked with Polymarket and Kalshi, while team members bring experience from Polymarket, 0x, Dune, and Coinbase itself. The company raised $15 million earlier this year with backing from Coinbase Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Haun Ventures, and several angel investors.

Investor Takeaway

How Do Prediction Markets Fit the “Everything platform” Plan?

Coinbase’s strategy has shifted toward building a single venue for multiple asset types rather than relying only on spot crypto trading. Prediction markets fit neatly into that plan because they sit at the intersection of derivatives, data, and real-world events. Contracts tied to elections, economic releases, or cultural outcomes already attract , particularly during periods of political uncertainty.

The Clearing Company’s technology offers Coinbase a native on-chain framework rather than a bolt-on product. That matters as event-based markets increasingly blur with traditional derivatives, especially when settlement depends on objective outcomes rather than discretionary judgments.

A Coinbase spokesperson described markets tied to real-world outcomes as “a natural extension of modern financial infrastructure.” The company’s timing also aligns with regulatory developments. Last month, The Clearing Company applied to the to become a Derivatives Clearing Organization, a step that could place prediction markets closer to established clearing and settlement frameworks.

Why Is Coinbase Betting on Prediction Markets as a Growth Area?

In its latest market outlook, Coinbase singled out prediction markets as one of the most significant categories to watch through 2026. The company pointed to rising engagement, clearer regulatory treatment, and expanding use cases beyond elections or sports.

Tax policy also plays a role. Coinbase highlighted a provision in President Donald Trump’s “One large lovely Bill” that would reduce the deductibility of gambling losses against winnings from 100% to 90%. Under that structure, some gamblers could owe taxes on so-called phantom income even when overall results are flat or negative.

Prediction markets rely on contracts that resemble derivatives more than wagers, and Coinbase argued this structure could make them more tax-efficient than traditional sportsbooks if treated diversely under the tax code. That framing positions event-based markets not as entertainment products, but as financial instruments tied to information and probability.

Investor Takeaway

How Crowded Is the Prediction Markets Landscape?

While still ahead, prediction markets are already dominated by a small group of platforms. Polymarket, built on Polygon, leads the decentralized segment and has viewn sharp volume increases since the . Kalshi operates under US oversight and has become the main regulated venue for event-based contracts.

Traditional players are also moving in. DraftKings has outlined plans to offer prediction-style markets and eventually crypto-linked contracts. Bitnomial Clearinghouse and Gemini have both signaled interest in the sector, suggesting that event-based trading is no longer confined to crypto-native platforms.

By acquiring The Clearing Company, Coinbase gains in-house expertise at a moment when infrastructure, regulation, and user demand are converging. The challenge now will be integration—folding into a platform that also handles equities and crypto without creating regulatory or operational friction.

The deal highlights a broader pattern: markets tied to real-world outcomes are moving closer to the financial mainstream, and crypto infrastructure is increasingly the foundation they are built on.