Polymarket Cuts Staff Ahead of Possible 2027 IPO
Prediction market platform Polymarket has confirmed it laid off some full-time staff and ended many contractor agreements as part of a company-wide reorganisation, as it prepares for a possible stock market listing as early as 2027.
The New York-based company confirmed the cuts on November 11, after an internal email telling contractors their agreements would end had circulated on social media. Polymarket declined to say how many people were affected and would not disclose its total headcount.
More than half of those let go were contractors rather than full-time employees, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters. The company also pushed back against viral social media claims that it had cut 30 per cent of its workforce, calling those figures inaccurate.
Marketing hit hardest after CMO exit
Marketing bore the brunt of the cuts. Polymarket fired its chief marketing officer, Matthew Modabber, in October after an internal investigation found his team had created fake webpages, according to Front Office Sports, which first reported the layoffs.
Modabber, a longtime friend of chief executive Shayne Coplan, has been replaced by former Uber executive Travis VanderZanden, who joined as chief growth officer. The company has also brought in Warren Jenson, a former chief financial officer of Amazon, Electronic Arts and Delta Air Lines, as its finance chief, and Lisa Mantil as head of institutional growth.
A Polymarket spokesperson said the company had reorganised as it brought in new leadership "to set the company up for its next phase of growth," adding that the changes involved new hires, personnel changes and letting some people go.
Professionalising for a possible listing
Two sources told Front Office Sports the reorganisation is designed to "professionalise" Polymarket ahead of a potential initial public offering that could come as soon as 2027. The company has not confirmed an IPO timetable or proposed offering terms.
Polymarket is also close to completing a $1 billion funding round led by 1789 Capital, the firm of Donald Trump Jr., which would value the company at about $21 billion, sources told the outlet.
The cuts come even as the business grows fast. Polymarket told CNBC on November 10 that its annualised revenue had passed $1.8 billion, up from an annual revenue run rate of more than $1 billion in June, driven largely by its US exchange.
Kalshi has taken the lead
The reorganisation follows a loss of market share to rival Kalshi, which handled 73 per cent of all prediction market trading volume in the third quarter of 2026, compared with about 18 per cent for Polymarket, according to data from Predicted cited by Front Office Sports.
Kalshi raised $1 billion from investors in late October in a round led by Sequoia Capital and Wellington Management, valuing it at $40 billion.
The pressure is not limited to Polymarket. DraftKings has also cut staff in its third round of layoffs this year, ahead of its third-quarter results, as heavy spending on its Predictions product weighs on its outlook.
What happens next
Polymarket has not said when a listing decision might come, and it declined to disclose how many employees or contractors were affected by the cuts. The company's recent senior hires, contractor reductions and funding round all point in the same direction: a shift from fast-growth startup mode towards the kind of structure public-market investors expect to see.
