DeFi Rate authorValerie Cross

Profile

About Valerie

Stories: 68

Valerie Cross, Ph.D., is a skilled editor, writer, and content strategist with over seven years in the iGaming, poker, and sports betting industry. She has led content teams, managed regional gambling sites, and covered major events like the World Series of Poker. Passionate about storytelling and SEO, Valerie creates engaging, data-driven content for gambling audiences. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, playing poker, and attending sporting events.

Her career highlights include serving as Editor-in-Chief at Catena Media, where she led a team of 15+ contributors and managed content for over 20 regional gambling websites. Prior to that, she was an Associate Editor at PokerNews, reporting on high-profile events like the World Series of Poker and European Poker Tour. She is passionate about highlighting women’s achievements in the gambling industry and was instrumental in expanding coverage of female poker players during her time at PokerNews. Valerie’s background blends creative storytelling with a strong foundation in SEO, content strategy, and analytics. Her work reflects a deep understanding of the intersection of entertainment and user engagement for gambling audiences. Valerie’s writing has been featured in leading gambling news outlets, making her a trusted voice in the space. When she’s not covering sweepstakes casinos or the latest gambling trends, Valerie enjoys traveling, playing poker, and attending sporting events.

News

Stories by Valerie Cross

41–60 of 68, newest first

Mar 4, 2026Kraken Gains Federal Reserve Access, Earning Crypto a Seat at the U.S. Banking Table
Kraken’s banking arm wins Fed master account access, putting crypto on the same payment rails as U.S. banks, and deepening the CLARITY Act stakes.
Mar 3, 2026CFTC Chair Selig Announces Rulemaking Push: What it Means for Prediction Markets
CFTC Chair Michael Selig confirmed plans to set self-certification standards and begin formal rulemaking for prediction markets. What it means for the industry.
Mar 3, 2026Kalshi’s AP Deal Is a Credibility Win, But Trust Issues Persist
The Associated Press will license official election data to Kalshi, but the backlash shows a gap between institutional credibility and public trust in prediction markets.
Mar 2, 2026Kalshi, Polymarket Combine for $17.9B February Volume as Polymarket Closes Gap
Both Kalshi ($9.93B) and Polymarket ($7.94B) posted MoM increases of nearly 4% in February. Meanwhile, Polymarket volume surged 32% WoW with help from Khamenei markets to close the gap on Kalshi.
Feb 26, 2026Axiom Insider Data Abuse Allegations Expose Crypto Compliance Gaps
On-chain investigator ZachXBT alleges insiders at Solana-based Axiom Exchange exploited access to customer order data, exposing compliance gaps as federal oversight is debated.
Feb 24, 2026Trump’s State of the Union Is a Multi-Million Dollar Mention Market — Here’s How Traders Are Playing It
We found average hit rate, historical trends, and what two experts have to say about Trump mention markets heading into the State of the Union address.
Feb 23, 2026Prediction Market Volume Holds at $5.25B as Kalshi Nears 50% Market Share
Weekly notional volume across prediction market platforms dipped 1.4% to $5.25 billion for Feb. 16–22. Kalshi jumped 6.7% to $2.59 billion as Polymarket slid 3.2% WoW to $1.83 billion.
Feb 23, 2026Is Opinion Lab’s $8B Prediction Market Volume Real? The Data Says It’s Complicated
Opinion onchain prediction exchange hit $8.08B in January volume for 31% market share. But 13–25x larger trades, sharp user swings, and structural incentives point to inflated trading data.
Feb 17, 2026What’s in Robinhood Ventures Fund I — and Should You Buy $RVI?
Robinhood Ventures Fund I gives retail investors access to Stripe, Databricks and other private companies. A breakdown of its fees, risks and how it compares to ARK and DXYZ.
Feb 16, 2026Prediction Markets Cool to $5.3B After Super Bowl Surge as 6-Month Growth Hits 13x
Weekly volume fell after the Super Bowl spike, yet industry volume has grown sharply over six months, with Kalshi leading in sports and Polymarket in non-sports markets.
Feb 13, 2026$1.63B in Super Bowl Prediction Market Volume, $304M on Culture: Full Data Breakdown
DeFi Rate tracked Super Bowl prediction market volume across dozens of markets and mention strikes, including heavy trading on the halftime show and ads.
Feb 9, 2026Super Bowl Fuels Kalshi Volume to Record $2.8B Week as Prediction Markets Hold Near $6.3B
Kalshi hit a record $2.80B volume week with the Super Bowl surge as Polymarket slipped to $1.92B; Weekly transactions jumped 21.8% WoW to 34.6 million.
Feb 8, 2026Who Has the Best Super Bowl Odds? We Compared Top Betting and Trading Apps
A comparison of Super Bowl game, player prop and parlay pricing across Kalshi, DraftKings Predictions, the OG app and FanDuel Sportsbook.
Feb 6, 2026What Will Collinsworth Say? Super Bowl Mentions Could Be Worth $5 Million in Volume
NFL mention markets surged 715% in average volume this season with a potential to bring in as much as $5 million in volume for Super Bowl. What might Cris Collinsworth and Mike Tirico say?
Feb 4, 2026Yahoo Finance Embeds Polymarket Hub Fueling 18% Weekly Surge
Yahoo! Finance now has Polymarket prediction markets embedded into its platform, extending the platform’s visibility to 150 million monthly users.
Feb 4, 2026Sporttrade Files for DCM Status Under CFTC to ‘Put the Consumer First’
Sporttrade applied to the CFTC to become a designated contract market, a move its CEO says lets it put the consumer first in new ways.
Feb 3, 2026OG Prediction Market App Launches Ahead of the Super Bowl, Powered by Crypto.com
The CFTC-regulated exchange promises margin trading, no user limits, and up to $500 in sign-up rewards just ahead of Super Bowl.
Feb 2, 2026Prediction Markets Log Third $6B+ Week as Polymarket Surges Without NFL
Prediction markets set record volume for a 5th consecutive week as Polymarket closed in on Kalshi with weekly volume of $2.1B vs. $2.2B.
Jan 30, 2026Trump Taps Kevin Warsh for Fed Chair as Markets React
Warsh was trading at 31% to be the next Fed chair nominee before spiking Thursday evening. What would his confirmation mean for monetary policy and interest rates?
Jan 26, 2026Prediction Markets Hit New $6.2B High as Kalshi Extends Win Streak
Kalshi grows to a new weekly high of $2.26B volume while Polymarket stays steady at $1.7B. NFL trading remains strong as other categories show higher growth.