Bloomberg to tap Polymarket Election Odds Data

Bloomberg LP is set to incorporate election odds data from the crypto betting platform Polymarket into its Bloomberg Terminal, a widely used financial data service with around 350,000 subscribers globally.

Michael McDonough, Bloomberg’s chief economist for financial products, stated in a post on X, “We are in the process of adding Polymarket data to WSL.” This addition will place Polymarket’s odds for the upcoming U.S. presidential election alongside data from other prediction markets such as PredictIt and traditional polling services.

We are in the process of adding @Polymarket data to WSL ELECTION<Go>! pic.twitter.com/aNM087bcwS

— Michael McDonough (@M_McDonough) August 29, 2024

Polymarket operates on the Polygon network and has become a key platform for tracking real-time election odds. The platform allows users to bet on various event outcomes using cryptocurrencies, leveraging transparent on-chain data and smart contracts for executing trades and payouts. Recent data from Dune Analytics shows that Polymarket’s trading volume for August was approximately $450 million, with nearly $760 million wagered on the U.S. presidential election outcome as of late August.

Polymarket Gains Traction Among Election Bettors

Polymarket has emerged as a significant player in the prediction market space, with bettors showing a preference for Republican candidate Donald Trump over Democratic contender Kamala Harris in the upcoming U.S. presidential election. The platform has seen substantial activity as the election race intensifies, and its users correctly predicted the recent withdrawal of independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from the race. Polymarket uses the USDC stablecoin, allowing participants to buy and sell shares in forecasts related to the likelihood of future events.

The platform reached a milestone in monthly trading volume, recording $1 billion for the first time, with $343 million in July alone. However, Polymarket is facing increasing competition from other platforms, including Solana-based Drift Protocol’s BET platform, which recently surpassed Polymarket in daily trading volume for the first time.

Lawmakers Call for Ban on Political Betting Markets

Polymarket’s activities have attracted the attention of U.S. lawmakers. Earlier this month, five Senators and three House representatives, including Senators Jeff Merkley, Richard Blumenthal, and Elizabeth Warren, called for a ban on betting activities linked to the 2024 presidential election. In a letter to Rostin Behnam, Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the lawmakers stated, “Political bets change the motivations behind each vote, replacing political convictions with financial calculations.”

The group expressed concerns that allowing betting on political outcomes could undermine public trust in the democratic process. They argued that large wagers by wealthy individuals could sway election results, stating that these markets could have a “perilous influence” on the electoral landscape. Polymarket, launched in 2020, continues to operate amid these regulatory challenges while gaining recognition in the financial sector with its recent integration into Bloomberg’s Terminal.