Fanatics buys regulated exchange in bid to grow prediction markets business
Fanatics has acquired Water Street Labs and CX Clearinghouse to expand its footprint in the prediction markets industry. This move allows the sports merchandise giant to list and settle its own prediction contracts, aiming to leverage its massive sports audience.
Why it matters
The acquisition signals a major push by mainstream consumer brands into the rapidly growing prediction market sector, potentially challenging crypto-native platforms.
On Monday, the sports merchandiser announced that it has agreed to acquire Water Street Labs and CX Clearinghouse from BGC Group, giving Fanatics ownership of a federally regulated exchange and clearinghouse which allows it to launch and settle its own prediction market contracts. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Through the acquisition, Fanatics will be able to list and clear contracts itself, giving it more control over the products it offers and how quickly it can bring new markets online. Fanatics and BGC also plan to develop new market data products that combine prediction market activity with traditional financial data, the companies said.
Prediction markets have become one of the fastest-growing areas of finance with much of that growth being fueled by CFTC-regulated exchange Kalshi and powerhouse Polymarket, which runs its operations on a blockchain.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in