Kalshi Inc. is an American financial exchange and prediction market based in New York City. Founded in 2018 by Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara, Kalshi allows users to trade on the outcome of future events. With a CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) license, Kalshi is a regulated platform, enabling trades on event contracts. It has raised $415 million in total funding, including a $185 million round in June 2025, which valued the company at $2 billion. Kalshi's platform offers a range of markets, including political, economic, and sports events.
Attribute | Information |
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Founding Date | 2018 |
Headquarters | New York City, NY, USA |
Founders | Tarek Mansour, Luana Lopes Lara |
Revenue | Not Publicly Disclosed |
Profits | Not Publicly Disclosed |
Key Investors | Paradigm, Sequoia Capital, Multicoin Capital |
Industry | Financial Services, Prediction Markets |
Number of Employees | Over 8,000 (as per public databases) |
Kalshi was conceived by Mansour and Lara while they were students at MIT, driven by a shared insight into financial markets' gap where trading directly on event outcomes was not possible. After founding Kalshi in 2018, they entered Y Combinator in 2019 to gain initial traction. Their work culminated in receiving a federal license from the CFTC in 2020, allowing them to operate legally within the regulatory framework of financial markets, a major milestone that set them apart from many unregulated competitors.
Kalshi operates under a centralized exchange model approved by the CFTC, providing event-based contracts that allow users to bet on yes-or-no questions. Their business model relies on transaction fees rather than speculative losses, distinguishing them in the market.
Kalshi continues to solidify its market presence by expanding its technological footprint through partnerships and improved contract types, covering diversified markets such as sports, weather, politics, and economics. Federally regulated, it remains competitive against platforms like Polymarket by maintaining compliance and expanding user accessibility.
Kalshi stands out due to its distinction as a federally regulated prediction market. As the first and only exchange sanctioned by the CFTC for such contracts, it maintains operational transparency, adheres to strict legal frameworks, and focuses on compliance as its core operational ethos.
Kalshi offers a secure trading environment with SOC 2 Type II compliance, employing SSL encryption and rigorous account protections. Its stringent regulatory adherence further ensures transactional and user data safety, upholding its reputation within the fintech industry.
Kalshi has emerged as a pioneering entity in the prediction markets space, leveraging regulatory compliance to establish a robust and expanding platform. With significant investments and a broadened market scope, it positions itself as a real-time insights tool for economic, political, and social forecasting. Future trajectories seem promising, as the company continues to court institutional support while innovating within its federally regulated mandate.