Polymarket partners with Nasdaq Private Market

Polymarket said on May 20 it had launched a new set of prediction markets tied to private companies, using Nasdaq Private Market as the exclusive source of data for resolving those contracts. The first markets cover questions tied to valuations, IPO timing and secondary-market activity for closely watched private firms including OpenAI and Anthropic, according to Polymarket pages and media reports. CNBC and CoinDesk reported the rollout on May 19, and Polymarket’s site now shows live markets tied to OpenAI and Anthropic outcomes. ### What exactly are Polymarket and Nasdaq Private Market doing together? Nasdaq Private Market is serving as the “exclusive resolution data provider” for the new contracts, according to reports describing the launch. That means the private-market data company supplies the information used to determine whether a contract tied to a valuation threshold, IPO event or other milestone pays out. CNBC said the markets are tied to private-company milestones including valuations, IPO timing and secondary-market activity. (cnbc.com) Nasdaq Private Market describes itself as a platform for private-company investing, liquidity programs and data products. On its site, the company says its data and intelligence business covers pricing, financing, ownership and analysis across private companies, with figures including more than $80 billion in secondary-market transactions and coverage of more than 700 private companies as of May 2026. ### Which companies are showing up in the first wave of contracts? (cnbc.com) OpenAI and Anthropic are among the examples cited in coverage of the launch, and both already have active Polymarket pages devoted to related questions. Polymarket’s OpenAI page lists contracts on issues including whether OpenAI’s valuation will hit specified levels by December 31, 2026, while its Anthropic page lists markets including whether Anthropic’s valuation will reach set thresholds this year. (nasdaqprivatemarket.com) Unchained reported that the first set also includes SpaceX, Stripe, Kraken, Anduril and Databricks. CoinDesk described the product as opening private-company milestone trading to retail users, while Crowdfund Insider, cited in the source briefing, said individuals could now engage directly with outcomes tied to prominent unlisted firms. ### How do these contracts differ from buying private-company shares? (polymarket.com) Polymarket’s contracts do not appear to give buyers equity ownership in OpenAI, Anthropic or other private firms. Instead, the contracts are event-based wagers on whether a specified milestone occurs by a stated deadline, as shown on Polymarket market pages covering IPO timing and valuation thresholds. A separate Nasdaq Private Market page, by contrast, offers access to buying and selling private-company shares on its investment platform. (unchainedcrypto.com) Nasdaq Private Market also maintains company pages for private firms including Polymarket itself, where it publishes estimated share-value data and financing history. That underscores the division in roles: Nasdaq Private Market handles private-share infrastructure and data, while Polymarket is offering contracts that resolve against those underlying data points. ### Why has the launch drawn regulatory attention in the same coverage? (polymarket.com) Polymarket’s expansion comes as prediction markets face broader scrutiny from lawmakers and regulators, according to reporting cited in the source briefing. Politico reported concern among some lawmakers about the spread of prediction markets, while UPI said senators were examining how platforms including Polymarket and Kalshi are marketed to minors. Roll Call separately reported that some House offices were moving to restrict staff participation. (nasdaqprivatemarket.com) The new private-company contracts add another category to that debate because they touch high-profile unlisted companies whose valuations are usually discussed through funding rounds and secondary transactions rather than public-market disclosures. That framing is an inference from the structure of the product and Nasdaq Private Market’s role as the settlement-data source. (nasdaqprivatemarket.com) ### What can users see now? Polymarket’s site already shows live contracts tied to OpenAI and Anthropic, including questions about valuation levels and which company will IPO first. One Polymarket page for “Will Anthropic or OpenAI IPO first?” showed more than $60,000 in traded volume as of May 21, while an Anthropic IPO market showed more than $1.3 million in volume. As of May 21, the next step is the trading itself: Polymarket’s AI, OpenAI and Anthropic pages list active markets with deadlines running through December 31, 2026 and December 31, 2027, and Nasdaq Private Market remains the named data source for settlement in launch coverage. (cnbc.com) (polymarket.com 1) (polymarket.com 2)