Shayne Coplan, the co-founder of the crypto prediction platform Polymarket, recently hinted at the development of a native POLY token. This speculation arose on October 8, shortly after the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the owner of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), announced a significant investment of $2 billion in his company, boosting its valuation to an impressive $9 billion.

A Mysterious Teaser

Coplan’s cryptic message appeared in response to an analysis by Nairolf, suggesting that the BNB Smart Chain (BSC) had outperformed Solana (SOL) and Ethereum (ETH) in public awareness, with Polymarket securing fifth place overall. In his tweet, Coplan shared a list of leading cryptocurrencies by market cap, replacing the fourth-largest non-stablecoin XRP with “$POLY” and included a thinking emoji, stirring curiosity in the crypto community.

Following this hint, various reactions emerged on X, with some crypto enthusiasts expressing optimism while others remained skeptical. Modabber, the CMO of Polymarket, commented, “They weren’t ready for this one chief.” Meanwhile, journalist Shin inquired, “Who dis, new coin?” Some users cautioned against speculative utility tokens and called for a more model-driven approach to enable user ownership of Polymarket.

Pseudonymous enthusiast HyperProphet speculated that launching POLY could significantly disrupt current markets, suggesting potential new avenues for user-driven sub-markets within the platform.

ICE’s $2 Billion Investment

The fleeting whispers of a POLY token coincide with ICE confirming its monumental investment in Polymarket, marking $9 billion as its new valuation, and making Coplan the youngest self-made billionaire, according to Bloomberg. Founded in 2020, Polymarket has swiftly become a leading player in prediction markets, amassing nearly $19 billion in cumulative trading volume with a reported success rate of 90% on event predictions. Notably, Coplan’s New York apartment was previously raided by the FBI in a related investigation, occurring soon after a successful forecast on the 2020 elections that suggested Donald Trump would outperform Kamala Harris.

ICE’s venture into the crypto prediction market signifies a landmark decision by traditional finance (TradFi) entities, following earlier fundraising rounds, including a $150 million raise led by Founders Fund earlier in 2025, which valued the company at $1.2 billion.