Robinhood Markets and Susquehanna International Group are moving aggressively into the fast-growing world of prediction markets, announcing a deal to acquire a 90% stake in LedgerX, a U.S.-regulated derivatives exchange previously tied to the collapsed crypto platform FTX.

The exchange, currently operated by Miami International Holdings, has been one of the few solvent assets recovered from the FTX bankruptcy. MIAX purchased LedgerX in 2023 for $50 million. Under the new transaction, MIAX will retain a 10% ownership stake, while Robinhood will become the controlling partner in a new joint venture with Susquehanna. Financial terms were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026, with the exchange launching operations later that year.

The acquisition gives Robinhood and Susquehanna direct control of the infrastructure needed to list, clear, and operate event-based futures and derivatives, a segment experiencing rapid mainstream adoption following last year’s federal court decision overturning the CFTC’s prohibition on election betting.“Robinhood is seeing strong customer demand for prediction markets, and we’re excited to build on that momentum,” said JB Mackenzie, vice president and general manager of futures and international at Robinhood.

Robinhood said it will introduce a futures and derivatives exchange and clearinghouse as part of the venture. Susquehanna will serve as the day-one liquidity provider, ensuring immediate depth for trading. Prediction markets, financial venues where users can trade contracts tied to real-world outcomes, are attracting unprecedented interest:

• Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) invested up to $2 billion in Polymarket in October.
   
• Kalshi, a major U.S. prediction market, was recently valued at $11 billion in a TechCrunch report.
   
• InPlay Global partnered with MEMX to launch sports-linked securities in 2025.
   
• DraftKings and FanDuel have each taken steps to build or partner with U.S.-regulated exchanges.
   
• Polymarket secured U.S. access via QCX, a regulated entity it acquired.

With this deal, Robinhood gains the ability to compete directly with Kalshi; an exchange on which Robinhood already routes significant customer volume. In its latest earnings report, Robinhood said customers traded 2.3 billion event contracts in the third quarter, more than double the previous quarter. Robinhood CFO Jason Warnick noted, “Kalshi is counting the activity that we send to them, which is quite substantial.”

Despite explosive growth, the regulatory landscape remains unsettled. A Nevada federal judge ruled this week that Kalshi is subject to state gaming regulators and must halt sports-based contracts in the state.The same judge also declined to grant Robinhood a restraining order that would prevent Nevada from enforcing gaming rules against its prediction-market offerings. Robinhood plans to appeal.

About Robinhood Markets, Inc.

Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ: HOOD) is a financial services platform offering commission-free trading of stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrencies. The company serves retail investors through its mobile-first brokerage model and continues to expand into new markets including futures, derivatives, and prediction-based event contracts.

About Susquehanna International Group

Susquehanna International Group (SIG) is a global quantitative trading and technology firm specializing in options market-making, equities, fixed income, and derivatives. The firm is an active liquidity provider in U.S. prediction markets, including Kalshi.

At the time of publishing, Stocks.News holds positions in Robinhood as mentioned in the article.