Polymarket Lays Off Employees and Ends Contractor Deals, Denies Reports of 30% Workforce Cuts

Polymarket has laid off employees and ended several contractor agreements as part of a broader company restructuring. Cuts have mainly affected its marketing, customer experience, and engineering teams.

The company said that the move comes as it prepares for its next phase of growth.

Latest Shake-Up

More than half of those affected were contractors, while some full-time employees were also let go, according to FOX Business. Polymarket also pushed back against reports claiming that around 30% of its workforce had been cut, and described that figure as inaccurate. However, the company has not shared how many employees or contractors were affected overall.

The layoffs came into focus after an internal email informing contractors about the termination of their agreements started circulating on X. According to Reuters, the email stated that their contracts would end effective November 4, 2026, under a company-wide reduction in force. The email was specifically sent to contractors rather than full-time staff.

The restructuring comes alongside several leadership changes at Polymarket. Warren Jenson joined as the company’s first chief financial officer in September, while former Uber executive Travis VanderZanden came on board as chief growth officer earlier this year.

The Bigger Picture

Prediction markets, as a whole, are seeing a sharp rise in trading activity. According to a recent report by Predicted, the sector recorded $194.1 billion in notional trading volume during the third quarter of 2026, up 75% from the previous quarter and its biggest quarter on record.

Polymarket and Kalshi together accounted for 91% of that volume, although their performance moved in different directions. Kalshi’s volume more than doubled to $141.9 billion. Polymarket US, on the other hand, grew 2.4 times to $17.3 billion, and overtook its international platform, which recorded $17.1 billion after a 36% decline.

The report also found that US-regulated exchanges accounted for 89% of total trading volume, up from 69% in Q2. Despite the jump in trading activity, search demand for prediction markets fell 41% during the quarter. Polymarket continued to lead search interest in 43 US states, while Kalshi gained ground and took the lead in the remaining seven.

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