DraftKings says DKeX reached third place in U.S. prediction markets

DraftKings’ in-house prediction-market exchange, DKeX, ranked third among U.S. operators by notional trading volume in the week ended Oct. 18, less than four months after its late-June launch. The exchange recorded $1.04 billion in trades and a 3.57% market share, according to Aldrin Research data, trailing Kalshi and Polymarket.

Jason Robins, DraftKings’ chief executive and co-founder, called the business the “clear No. 3” at the NEXTPredict conference in New York City, as reported by Covers. He said the platform continued to gain market share, while acknowledging that the leading exchanges retained a substantial head start.

DKeX’s share had risen from 2.33% in the week ended Sept. 26. Aldrin also recorded a single-day high of about $316 million in DKeX notional volume on Oct. 18, up 42% from the previous week and more than double the roughly $140 million reported on Sept. 13.

Those figures measure notional contract volume, rather than the dollars paid by customers. RG.org reported that combos accounted for 78% of DKeX’s Oct. 18 notional volume but 31% of dollar volume, while dollar volume had remained between $40 million and $42 million on the three most recent Sundays. As we reported in September, multi-leg combinations had already become a growing part of prediction-market trading.

DraftKings Predictions operates in 38 states, although its full event-contract suite is available in only 18. The company advertises the product nationally through its “super app,” but offerings vary by state. Nevada customers can access only free-to-play sports contests.

DraftKings avoids sports event contracts in states where it takes conventional sports wagers, citing the risk to its sports-betting licences. Robins said the company would be more prominent if it could offer sports contracts in New York, but said threatening its existing licences would not have been a sensible trade-off. That restriction gives the exchange a narrower state footprint than some rivals.

The company is investing in non-sports contracts as well. Robins said DraftKings had been pleasantly surprised by demand for financial markets and plans to further develop those products before promoting them more heavily. He argued that the company’s unified app and wallet, sportsbook technology, product-development capabilities and customer data helped speed the rollout.

The expansion comes as the sector becomes more competitive and operators spend on infrastructure, regulatory approvals and customer acquisition. Legal challenges to sports-related event contracts were moving toward the U.S. Supreme Court, adding uncertainty around prediction markets’ most popular product.

Broader trading has surged, led by sports. Pew Research Center found combined monthly global volume on Kalshi and Polymarket doubled from $26 billion in May to $53 billion in July, largely because of increased sports trading. DraftKings shares had fallen more than 40% during the year, with Robins attributing investor concern in part to uncertainty surrounding federally regulated prediction-market exchanges.