Circle has partnered with Polymarket to power dollar-denominated settlement using native USDC. This latest development shows how prediction markets are increasingly being built on institutional-grade financial infrastructure.
The partnership was announced by Circle in a post on X, where the company said it will support “the next evolution of onchain financial markets” by bringing transparent, fully reserved stablecoin infrastructure to prediction markets. Circle also pledged to reduce settlement friction as participation and liquidity scale.
In a blog post detailing the agreement, Circle said Polymarket will transition from bridged USDC (USDC.e) on Polygon to native USDC in the coming months. Native USDC is issued by Circle’s regulated affiliates and is redeemable 1:1 for U.S. dollars, offering what Circle described as a more capital-efficient and institutionally aligned settlement standard.
“Polymarket has been at the forefront of innovation in marrying the speed of information with the speed of markets,” said Jeremy Allaire, adding that the partnership brings “the utility and speed of USDC to provide the best possible experience for Polymarket users.”
Circle 🤝 @Polymarket
— Circle (@circle) February 5, 2026
Circle has partnered with Polymarket, the world’s largest prediction market, to support the next evolution of onchain financial markets.
This partnership focuses on:
→ Bringing transparent, fully-reserved stablecoin infrastructure to prediction markets… pic.twitter.com/5lNfUPG3xu
Strengthening market integrity as participation grows
Polymarket currently uses USDC as collateral for all trading activity. Moving to native issuance removes reliance on bridged assets, a shift that reduces smart contract and liquidity risk while improving redemption guarantees. This is an increasingly important consideration as prediction markets attract larger traders and more institutional attention.
Polymarket founder and CEO Shayne Coplan called the partnership an infrastructure upgrade.
“Circle has built some of the most critical infrastructure in crypto, and partnering with them is an important step in strengthening prediction markets,” Coplan said. “Using USDC supports a consistent, dollar-denominated settlement standard that enhances market integrity and reliability as participation on the platform continues to grow.”
Polymarket also highlighted the deal on X, telling users that balances on the platform will soon be backed 1:1 by the U.S. dollar via USDC.
USDC 🤝 @Polymarket
— USDC (@USDC) February 5, 2026
USDC is becoming a core part of how prediction markets evolve.
Through a new partnership, Circle and Polymarket are collaborating on stablecoin-powered settlement to support faster execution, lower friction, and trusted collateral as prediction markets… pic.twitter.com/CIa4YmFTvk
Prediction markets combine with financial infrastructure
The Circle-Polymarket partnership indicates how prediction markets are positioning themselves. It was once viewed as niche or speculative products. Now, leading platforms are focusing on transparency, settlement guarantees, and infrastructure parity with traditional financial markets.
In its announcement, Circle compared Polymarket’s trajectory to established market operators such as Intercontinental Exchange. It placed prediction markets as an emerging category of information-driven financial instruments instead of betting products.
That aligns with recent moves across the sector, where stablecoins are treated as foundational rails for onchain finance.
Why native USDC matters
For prediction markets, settlement mechanics are not a back-office detail. Prices are expressions of probability, and confidence in those prices depends on trust in collateral and payout certainty. Native USDC offers a familiar dollar standard without requiring users to exit onchain environments, a balance that few assets can currently provide.
The partnership reduces friction for larger participants by anchoring Polymarket’s collateral to a fully reserved, regulated stablecoin. At the same time, it preserves the speed and composability that make onchain markets attractive in the first place.
The deal suggests that the next phase of prediction markets will be more about infrastructure combination. Hence, onchain platforms might adopt the settlement, transparency, and reliability expectations of traditional finance without sacrificing global accessibility.
