Kalshi Bets Big on Solana: US Prediction Market Now Accepts SOL Deposits
Wall Street’s favorite crypto playground just got a Solana upgrade. Kalshi—the regulated US prediction market—is now rolling out SOL deposits, letting traders gamble on futures with one of crypto’s fastest-growing assets.
Move over, Bitcoin maximalists—Solana’s institutional moment is here. Kalshi’s pivot to SOL isn’t just a nod to retail demand; it’s a hedge against Ethereum’s gas fee circus. Because nothing says ’efficient markets’ like paying $50 to place a $10 bet.
Prediction markets are heating up, and Solana’s speed makes it the perfect chip for high-frequency gamblers—er, traders. Just don’t blame the blockchain when your ’sure thing’ political bet crashes harder than a meme coin.
Kalshi strategic partnerships for expansion
The exchange and prediction market, which is regulated by the CFTC and lets investors trade on how real-life events will turn out, originally only accepted USD Coin (USDC) as a FORM of crypto deposit. Kalshi Circle’s USDC for bets received up to $25M in deposits during the US election season.
In early 2025, Kalshi achieved monthly volumes of around $13M, with a peak of $26M in October 2024.
In early April, it added Bitcoin payments made through the Bitcoin network to the list of crypto deposits it accepts.
Kalshi has over 50 crypto-specific markets where users can trade contracts based on Bitcoin price thresholds, legislative events, and adoption milestones. For instance, markets for betting on coins’ 2025 highs and lows, as well as on headlines such as US President Donald Trump’s proposed National Bitcoin Reserve. The platform has over 300 markets in 12 main categories.
Several strategic relationships have led to the new integration. Kalshi and World App just released a mini app that lets users access regulated prediction markets from the World App interface. Users can also use Worldcoin (WLD) to pay their Kalshi account.
This week, Kalshi announced its integration with Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI to offer AI-generated information for betting on events that happen in the real world. Although it was called off, this still shows that the company has plans to expand.
Kalshi’s competes with Polymarket
Prediction markets, in particular, are starting to disrupt the sector. They’re growing fast in the US, and they’re not regulated the same way as traditional sports betting or online gambling. With both Kalshi and Polymarket, they are currently legal in all 50 states.
Polymarket has been doing quite well because it doesn’t charge any fees to trade. Therefore, users can easily buy and sell shares, like betting on and against outcomes. If a user wants to cash out USDC, it costs 1.5%. However, the network fees are very low because it’s based on Polygon.
Polymarket announced on March 25 that users can deposit SOL into their wallets. This to some extent has influenced Kalshi, its biggest competitor. In a now-deleted podcast segment, Kalshi CEO admits enlisting influencers to dis Polymarket.
On the other hand, Kalshi charges 2% for each account withdrawal. They also charge a 1% trading fee that can’t be more than 10% of net profits and a 10% settlement fee on net wins. The fees differ for each payment method when you deposit or take money.
In addition, Polymarket works in a bit of a legal gray area. Its website doesn’t list any official rules. This has made it blocked in several countries. There are some risks when it comes to clear laws and market trickery. For instance, it was accused of fraud after a $7 million market was allegedly manipulated by UMA whales.
However, many users are interested in trends like Polymarket’s decentralized, blockchain-based website. This is what Kalshi has become interested in.
With Kalshi, users can also use regular money, and the CFTC fully regulates it. This makes it easy to use, especially for more traditional people.
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