Crypto Reporter
Shalini Nagarajan
Crypto Reporter
Shalini Nagarajan
Share
Robinhood Markets and Susquehanna Group have agreed to buy 90% of regulated exchange LedgerX from Miami International Holdings, in a deal that pushes the US retail trading giant deeper into event-driven crypto markets as interest in prediction platforms accelerates.
The partners plan to run LedgerX as an independent exchange through a new joint venture, with Robinhood as the controlling partner.
Miami International Holdings will keep a strategic 10% stake. Financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed.
LedgerX once sat inside the empire of collapsed crypto exchange FTX. Miami International acquired it out of FTX’s bankruptcy estate in 2023 for $50m and housed it under its umbrella.
The new venture will now acquire MIAXdx, the LedgerX entity that carries approvals as a Designated Contract Market, Derivatives Clearing Organization and Swap Execution Facility, giving Robinhood and Susquehanna a ready-made regulatory platform.
New Venue Targets Growing Appetite For Prediction Markets
Robinhood said the deal will pave the way for a futures and derivatives exchange and clearinghouse built with prediction markets in mind. The exchange will serve Robinhood Derivatives and other futures commission merchants, and is expected to begin operations in 2026, opening a new institutional-grade venue for traders who want to bet on real-world events through crypto-style contracts.
“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. “Our investment in infrastructure will position us to deliver an even better experience and more innovative products for customers.”
Internally, prediction markets have already become one of Robinhood’s key growth engines.
The company says that in the first year since launch, customers traded about 9b contracts across more than 1m accounts, turning event contracts into its fastest-growing product line by revenue and giving it confidence to invest in a dedicated exchange and clearing stack.
Susquehanna Joins As Liquidity Anchor For New Prediction Venue
Susquehanna, one of the largest proprietary trading and market-making firms in global derivatives, will join as a day-one liquidity provider. The joint venture plans to add more market makers over time, aiming to keep spreads tight and execution quality competitive for both Robinhood’s retail users and institutional clients that access the venue through other intermediaries.
The deal lands as prediction markets move from niche crypto corners into mainstream finance in the US. Interest surged after a federal court threw out a Commodity Futures Trading Commission prohibition on election-betting last year, opening the door for regulated platforms to list contracts tied to politics and other real-world outcomes.
Traditional market infrastructure is following the money. Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, agreed in October to invest up to $2b in Polymarket.
Kalshi, another heavyweight in the sector, recently drew a valuation of about $11b in a fundraising round, according to a TechCrunch report, signalling strong investor appetite for event-driven trading venues.
Tech Giants Bring Visibility To Crowd-Priced Event Markets
Large derivatives exchanges are also circling the space. CME Group and Cboe have both outlined plans to enter prediction markets, betting that event contracts can sit alongside more established products such as equity index futures and listed options.
Crypto-native institutions are positioning themselves as liquidity backbones for this new market structure. Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital is in talks with Polymarket and Kalshi about acting as a market-maker, posting bids and offers that can deepen order books and make it easier for large traders to move in and out of positions tied to everything from elections to macroeconomic releases.
Big technology platforms are adding another layer of visibility. Google Finance recently said it will begin showing live data from Polymarket and Kalshi, so users who ask about future events will be able to see how crowd odds are evolving in real time, alongside more traditional market data.
For Robinhood and Susquehanna, the LedgerX deal offers a shortcut into this growing ecosystem, combining a crypto-savvy retail base, institutional market making and a fully licensed derivatives venue.
