Prediction market platform Polymarket has reduced its staff and terminated contractor contracts as it restructures operations under pressure from investors and mounting competition from its competitor Kalshi.
Bloomberg reported on Thursday that the organization acknowledged the layoffs while declining to specify the exact number of individuals impacted. Polymarket explained that the adjustments encompassed “a lot of new hires, changes in personnel and letting some people go.”
Additionally, the business verified that an electronic mail message that has been circulating on X detailing a “company-wide reduction in force” is authentic. Over fifty percent of the impacted individuals were independent contractors.
The downsizing comes as a result of backers urging founder Shayne Coplan to institute greater financial discipline within the enterprise, based on the report.
Polymarket, a service that permits participants to wager on the results of political contests, athletic competitions, and other occurrences, currently lags behind Kalshi in monthly transaction volume, based on statistics from DeFiLlama.
This alteration in market positioning transpires as both enterprises attempt to attract additional participants to forecasting platforms, where speculators purchase and liquidate agreements determined by the probabilities of actual occurrences.
Polymarket has likewise altered its executive ranks, appointing ex-Amazon finance leader Warren Jenson as its inaugural chief financial officer during September.
Originally published at https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/11/12/polymarket-trims-workforce-under-investor-pressure-as-kalshi-surges-ahead.
