Fanatics buys regulated exchange in bid to grow prediction markets business

Fanatics acquires Water Street Labs and CX Clearinghouse from BGC Group, gaining control of a federally regulated exchange and clearinghouse to launch and settle its own prediction market contracts. The move positions Fanatics to compete directly with Kalshi and Polymarket as prediction markets accelerate across sports, finance and crypto.

This Wire brief sits within Fusion42's coverage of Crypto & Web3. Wire is Fusion42's founder-focused intelligence feed: each story is connected to the funds and startups it names — every one with a live profile on Raise or Scout — so founders can follow the capital and the momentum behind the headline rather than just the headline itself. Wire analysis is one of the live surfaces Arthur reasons over.