Kalshi in Talks to Raise Funds at $65 Billion Valuation to Build Compute Futures Platform, Source Says

Since Kalshi closed a $1 billion round in late October, the prediction market has moved on to its next raise. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday, Nov. 12, that the company is in talks to raise fresh funds at a $65 billion valuation. The money would go toward a new platform for trading compute futures.

Kalshi could not immediately be reached for comment. Nothing has been signed or announced.

The valuation climb

The October round was co-led by Sequoia and Wellington. It came just over five months after a Coatue-led $1 billion round that valued Kalshi at $22 billion.

People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News that the October round valued the company at $40 billion. They said it was expected to be the last private raise before an anticipated IPO, but Kalshi decided to go back to private markets instead.

If the talks produce a deal at $65 billion, it would be a steep step up from the $40 billion October valuation and the $22 billion Coatue-round valuation of a little over five months earlier.

What compute futures are

Compute futures are contracts that let traders hedge or speculate on the future price of computing resources such as cloud and GPU capacity. Companies could use them to lock in processing power and manage price swings in the AI market.

The move would put Kalshi in direct competition with CME Group and Intercontinental Exchange, the parent of the New York Stock Exchange. CME has said it is partnering with Silicon Data to launch compute futures later this year, pending regulatory review. ICE and Kalshi have both been in the running for similar products.

CFTC Chairman Michael Selig has called for them. "America cannot win the AI race without a robust derivatives market for compute," he said in a statement earlier this year while seeking industry comment.

A regulator that is hitting the brakes

Reports earlier this week said the CFTC has postponed approval of futures contracts tied to GPU rental prices. The agency plans to consult benchmark providers on price-manipulation concerns in this new asset class.

The regulator's pullback bears directly on a company raising money on a compute-futures plan. The product Kalshi wants to build depends on the same regulator whose approvals have already drawn fire.

The political overhang

The fundraising talks surfaced the same day Kalshi announced it was parting ways with Donald Trump Jr. as an adviser. Kalshi said the split came because his firm, 1789, added about $300 million to its Polymarket investment in August, on top of about $200 million earlier. Kalshi said both sides understood that advising two competitors was "complicating things." A spokesman for Trump Jr. confirmed the decision was mutual.

Trump Jr.'s compensation included Kalshi shares granted when he was hired in January 2025, now estimated to be worth millions. It was not immediately clear whether he keeps them.

Critics, including Democrats in Congress, see the CFTC's treatment of Kalshi as a conflict-of-interest problem. Democrats have promised to investigate allegations of self-dealing by the administration, and critics have pointed to federal approvals for Kalshi as a prime example. The CFTC's decisions beginning in May to let Kalshi offer trading on stocks, cryptocurrencies and other assets without owning them also prompted lawsuits from major trading clearinghouses. They claim the agency is violating federal laws meant to protect investors and markets.

The other side of the argument is on the record too. Trump Jr.'s spokesman has said he was involved only in helping Kalshi market itself, not in negotiating with the federal government. The CFTC has backed Kalshi in its legal fights with states that say prediction markets fall under sports-betting law.

Trading volume

Kalshi's growth is not just a valuation story. Company data shared exclusively with Fox News Digital showed more than $1.2 billion traded on its 2026 midterm markets, surpassing its volume during the 2024 presidential election year. Kalshi launched its Midterms Hub in July.

The data also showed traders sorted by industry leaning in different directions. Law enforcement traders put 67.9% of their dollars on Republicans, while arts and entertainment traders put 60.1% on Democrats.

What to watch

The main open issue is the CFTC. CME's compute futures launch is still pending regulatory review, and the agency is planning to consult benchmark providers on price-manipulation concerns. Kalshi's $65 billion talks, if they close, will have been priced while the regulator's approvals for GPU-related futures remain postponed.

Kalshi has not commented on the talks.