Trump Media to enter prediction markets business

(Reuters) -Trump Media and Technology Group said on Tuesday it will introduce prediction markets on its social media platform Truth Social through a partnership with Crypto.com, as event-driven markets continue to make inroads into mainstream finance. The collaboration, involving streaming platform Truth+, fintech brand Truth.Fi and exchange and clearinghouse Crypto.com, will begin beta testing live on Truth Social in the near future, followed by a full launch in the U.S. Trump Media plans to launch the service globally once all the requisite requirements are met. Prediction markets allow users to profit from forecasting a wide range of events, including sports, entertainment, politics, and economic trends. Trading in these event-based contracts has gained momentum since last year's U.S. presidential election. And as interest grows, prediction markets are increasingly seen as a serious contender for broader acceptance in financial circles, with some experts touting them as more accurate than traditional polls, particularly in tightly contested scenarios. Critics, however, argue that these markets are little more than "digital casinos". "For too long, global elites have closely controlled these markets — with Truth Predict, we're democratizing information and empowering everyday Americans to harness the wisdom of the crowd, turning free speech into actionable foresight," said Devin Nunes, Chairman and CEO of Trump Media, said. Earlier this year, Trump Media and Crypto.com had agreed to a deal with a blank-check acquisition company to launch a new venture that will pursue a treasury-style strategy to accumulate the cryptocurrency platform's native token CRO, deepening the ties of U.S. President Donald Trump to the industry. "Prediction markets are poised to be a multi-deca-billion dollar industry," said Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek. Kalshi and Polymarket, two of the largest prediction markets globally, have received a lot of interest from venture capital firms and other investors in recent months, solidifying the reach and engagement of prediction markets. Polymarket had secured an investment from Trump Jr-backed 1789 Capital earlier in the year. (Reporting by Pritam Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)

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