Prediction Markets Are Becoming Financial Infrastructure

Varun Datta , venture capitalist and CEO of Truth Ventures, explores why prediction markets are emerging as one of Web3’s most compelling real-world applications. If you have used Polymarket or Kalshi, you probably think of them as somewhere to place a quick bet on an election or a match. However, they are quickly evolving beyond this simple function into something more embedded and infrastructural. Traders put around $44.8 billion through Kalshi and Polymarket in June 2026. These two are among the largest prediction markets in the world now.