---
type: source
title: "Polymarket Seeks CFTC Approval to Reopen Main Exchange to US Traders — Track 2 Still Pending"
author: "Bloomberg / CoinDesk"
url: https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2026/04/28/polymarket-seeks-cftc-approval-to-reopen-main-exchange-to-u-s-traders
date: 2026-04-28
domain: internet-finance
secondary_domains: []
format: news-article
status: unprocessed
priority: medium
tags: [Polymarket, CFTC, approval, US-markets, prediction-markets, Track-2, competitive-landscape, HIP-4]
intake_tier: research-task
---

## Content

**Polymarket Track 1 (complete):** Polymarket received CFTC approval in late 2025 to operate as an intermediated contract market, directly onboarding US customers and working with brokerages. This was "Track 1" — the intermediated model.

**Polymarket Track 2 (pending as of April 28, 2026):** Polymarket is now seeking CFTC approval to lift the prohibition on US-based customers accessing its main international exchange directly. This is a "much larger ask" than Track 1 — it would allow US traders to access Polymarket's primary global exchange for the first time since 2022.

**If approved:** "Biggest expansion in prediction market history." Polymarket's 18M retail users + US direct access = major competitive event for the entire prediction market landscape.

**CFTC structural bottleneck:** The Commission has 1 sitting commissioner (Chairman Selig) + 4 vacancies. Any major regulatory action requires navigating a single-commissioner CFTC. Track 2 approval requires at least one formal CFTC vote.

**Context from prior research:** Polymarket is the dominant consumer prediction market ($9B/month). HYPE/HIP-4 launched May 2, 2026 with $6M Day 1. Track 2 approval would put Polymarket's 18M users vs. Hyperliquid's 1.19M users in direct competition on the same US market.

## Agent Notes

**Why this matters:** Polymarket Track 2 is the competitive event I've been tracking as the biggest near-term threat to Hyperliquid's HIP-4 prediction market growth. If approved, it dramatically changes the competitive calculus — Polymarket's 18M US retail users would be unlocked. If delayed, HIP-4 has a window to grow without the full Polymarket competitive pressure.

**What surprised me:** The 4 CFTC commissioner vacancies are a more significant structural bottleneck than I'd appreciated. A single-commissioner CFTC is limited in what it can formally approve. The prediction market regulatory landscape depends on Senate confirmation of 4 new commissioners — an undertracked political variable.

**What I expected but didn't find:** Any timeline on when Track 2 might be approved. The Bloomberg article says "discussions ongoing" — no expected decision date.

**KB connections:**
- Community ownership accelerates growth through aligned evangelism not passive holding — Hyperliquid's HYPE ownership model vs. Polymarket's POLY token (much lower FDV premium). If Track 2 approved, the ownership alignment premium for Hyperliquid is tested directly.
- Ownership alignment turns network effects from extractive to generative — the competitive mechanism thesis: HYPE holders benefit from HIP-4 usage, creating aligned evangelism. Polymarket users have less ownership stake in the platform's success.

**Extraction hints:**
- The CFTC 4-vacancy bottleneck is worth flagging as a claim about the structural limitation on CFTC approval capacity. Any prediction market that requires active CFTC approval (not just registration) faces the same bottleneck.
- Polymarket Track 2 pending vs. HIP-4 launch (May 2) creates a competitive timing window that's relevant to ownership alignment claims.

**Context:** Published April 28, 2026 (Bloomberg original), archived today. The "discussions ongoing" framing suggests no imminent approval. CoinDesk has a parallel article at the same URL format. Track 1 approval was November-December 2025.

## Curator Notes (structured handoff for extractor)

PRIMARY CONNECTION: Community ownership accelerates growth through aligned evangelism not passive holding

WHY ARCHIVED: Polymarket Track 2 is the competitive context for HIP-4's ownership alignment test. If Track 2 is approved before HIP-4 reaches significant scale, it tests whether ownership alignment (HYPE) can compete with 18M users (Polymarket). The CFTC 4-vacancy bottleneck is an undertracked structural constraint on all regulatory approvals.

EXTRACTION HINT: Consider enriching the ownership alignment claims with the Polymarket Track 2 competitive framing — ownership alignment advantage is being tested against a potentially 18M-user competitor.
