Shayne Coplan - World’s Youngest Self-made Billionaire

Shayne Coplan, founder and CEO of the blockchain-based prediction market Polymarket, has attained the status of the world's youngest self-made billionaire aged 27, following a $2 billion investment in his enterprise.

The milestone follows the announcement by Intercontinental Exchange, the proprietor of the New York Stock Exchange, regarding its intention to invest up to US$2 billion in Polymarket at a US$8 billion pre-money valuation. Bloomberg has designated Coplan as a billionaire, although has not disclosed his precise net worth.

The publication disclosed that Coplan, a native of New York City, departed from New York University to embark on a career in cryptocurrency; however, he became financially destitute and resorted to listing his possessions from his Lower East Side apartment for sale to cover his rent. Disillusioned by cryptocurrency fraud, in 2019 he shifted his focus to theories regarding prediction markets and their capacity to improve society's event forecasting capabilities.

"This concept is too valuable to remain solely in academic papers," he subsequently stated on X. Upon the onset of Covid-19, he determined it was an opportune moment to develop an application enabling individuals confined at home to wager on real-world events. He commenced the development of Polymarket from his bathroom, which was released in June 2020.

The platform's "move fast, seek approval subsequently" policy consistently conflicted with regulators, who compelled it to prohibit U.S. users for several years due to its unregistered exchange status. In 2022, Polymarket encountered significant legal difficulties when it consented to a US$1.4 million settlement to resolve accusations of illicit trading. The corporation restricted access for U.S. users without acknowledging or refuting any misconduct.

Subsequently, regulators feared that the location continued to accommodate Americans, leading to an FBI raid on Coplan's residence one week after the 2024 election. The platform subsequently obtained a license and legitimately restarted operations in the U.S.

Prior to the investment from Intercontinental Exchange, the company had secured a minimum of $255 million, as per Pitchbook statistics. Investors comprise billionaire Peter Thiel and his Founders Fund, Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin, and Blockchain Capital. Donald Trump Jr., the son of President Donald Trump, assumed the role of adviser for the firm in August.

Polymarket has transformed the gambling and financial forecasting industries by integrating blockchain transparency with market-driven predictions, garnering increasing interest from both individual and institutional users, as reported by the crypto news platform CoinDesk.

The competing site Kalshi has also grown this year by providing prediction-market wagers through a collaboration with Robinhood Markets. Since its inception in 2020, Polymarket has seen an approximate cumulative trading volume of $19 billion, as reported by the digital asset news platform The Block.