Institutional cryptocurrency trading platform Talos has integrated with Kalshi, enabling select clients to trade the prediction market operator's event contracts and crypto perpetuals through the same infrastructure they already use for digital assets. Event contracts allow participants to take positions on the outcomes of real-world events — from elections and economic data releases to sports tournaments — and their structure as binary-outcome instruments shares operational similarities with the derivatives products crypto trading firms already manage. The integration eliminates the need for a separate connection.

Talos will offer algorithmic order types including Iceberg, TWAP, and POV, along with multi-leg execution for perp-to-perp and perp-to-spot spread trades. Institutional clients will also be able to execute block trades in Kalshi contracts through its request-for-quote (RFQ) platform using participating over-the-counter liquidity providers.

Later this year, Talos plans to extend its dealer software to brokers and trading platforms, allowing them to offer Kalshi event contracts directly to customers where permitted. The company also intends to launch a unified prediction market data feed that standardizes events, trades, order books, open interest, and implied probabilities across venues.

The integration lowers operational barriers for hedge funds, market makers, and other professional trading firms already using Talos, enabling them to add regulated prediction markets alongside their existing crypto trading activity. Kalshi operates as a CFTC-regulated designated contract market, a status that distinguishes it from offshore prediction market venues and makes it comparatively easier for US-based institutional participants to access.

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Prediction Markets Hit Record Trading Volumes

The Talos integration arrives as prediction markets attract record trading activity and growing institutional interest. According to a CoinGecko report, notional trading volume reached $113.8 billion in the second quarter, up 48.7% from the previous quarter. June alone saw $52.8 billion in notional volume, marking a new monthly record.

CoinGecko attributed the surge to a packed sports calendar that included the UEFA Champions League final, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup, FIFA World Cup, and Wimbledon. On Polymarket, sports contracts accounted for 81% of June trading volume, up significantly from 40% in January.

Kalshi expanded its lead among prediction market platforms, increasing its market share to 58.9% from 42.4% in the first quarter. Polymarket's share declined to 30.2% from 35.8%, while Rothera — the Robinhood and Susquehanna International Group-backed venture launched in May — climbed to fourth place in June with $2.1 billion in notional trading volume.

Regulatory and Legal Headwinds Persist

Despite the rapid growth, prediction markets continue to face legal and regulatory challenges. In the United States, Kalshi is battling several state regulators over whether its sports event contracts constitute illegal gambling — a dispute many legal observers believe could ultimately reach the US Supreme Court. The outcome of these state-level disputes could shape how broadly CFTC-regulated platforms can offer event contracts, particularly in categories that resemble traditional sports betting.

The industry also faces growing scrutiny over potential insider trading. Earlier this year, six Polymarket traders reportedly made approximately $1 million by correctly betting on US military strikes against Iran before the attacks became public. Last week, a White House teleprompter operator was placed on unpaid leave after allegedly making more than $100,000 betting on Kalshi markets tied to President Donald Trump's speeches.

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