Polymarket Founder Becomes Youngest Billionaire at 27

Shayne Coplan, founder of prediction platform Polymarket, became the world’s youngest self-made billionaire following Intercontinental Exchange’s $2 billion investment. The deal valued Polymarket at $9 billion post-money, catapulting the 27-year-old dropout from NYU into Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

Coplan revealed that Polymarket privately closed two unannounced rounds before ICE’s stake, raising $205 million at sharply rising valuations. Blockchain Capital led a $55 million round last year valuing the firm at $350 million, followed by a $150 million Founders Fund round this spring at $1.2 billion.

Those financings brought in a high caliber of investors, including Ribbit, Point72, Coinbase, Dragonfly, 1789 Capital, and Valor Equity Partners. High-profile angels such as Naval Ravikant, Travis Kalanick, Rick Rubin, Ari Emanuel, and Mark Pincus also participated across rounds.

Polymarket’s new $9 billion valuation follows a dramatic turnaround after US regulators dropped investigations earlier this year. ICE’s backing gives the firm Wall Street reach through NYSE owner Jeffrey Sprecher’s global exchange network, cementing Coplan as crypto’s newest (and youngest) billionaire.

Square Launches Bitcoin Payments for US Merchants

Square, owned by Jack Dorsey’s Block Inc., unveiled Bitcoin payments for merchants across the United States. The feature lets sellers accept BTC, convert sales automatically, or hold funds in an integrated wallet. Square said processing fees will remain free through 2026 before transitioning to a 1% transaction rate.

The service expands Dorsey’s mission to make Bitcoin a universal payment medium while reinforcing Block’s broader digital asset ecosystem. Merchants can buy, sell, and withdraw bitcoin directly through their Square dashboards, reaching over four million users. Analysts said the launch signals crypto’s mainstream re-entry as businesses seek lower-cost, borderless payment options.

MetaMask Adds Perpetuals Trading Via Hyperliquid

MetaMask announced native support for Hyperliquid, allowing users to trade perpetual derivatives directly within the wallet interface. The Hyperliquid integration expands MetaMask’s financial services beyond Ethereum swaps, responding to rising demand for decentralized perpetuals. Consensys, MetaMask’s parent company, said the move aligns with its strategy to deepen user engagement across onchain financial tools.

The wallet also plans to integrate Polymarket, enabling access to prediction markets alongside derivatives trading. MetaMask said users can earn seasonal rewards, including Linea tokens, through its upcoming points system. Industry analysts called the updates part of MetaMask’s effort to expand into a full-featured onchain finance platform bridging DeFi, trading, and user incentives.

Ethena and Jupiter Launch Solana Stablecoin JupUSD

Ethena Labs partnered with Solana-based protocol Jupiter to introduce JupUSD, a dollar-pegged stablecoin integrated across Jupiter’s DeFi ecosystem. The token will initially be backed by USDtb, Ethena’s regulated synthetic dollar, and supported through liquidity pools exceeding $750 million. JupUSD aims to unify stablecoin trading, lending, and collateral use within Solana’s expanding decentralized finance network.

Developers said JupUSD will serve as collateral for perpetuals, liquidity hubs, and new trading interfaces on Jupiter’s platform. Ethena’s founder Guy Young called the partnership a "milestone" for decentralized dollar infrastructure on Solana. Analysts said the collaboration could disrupt Solana’s stablecoin market, providing institutional-grade compliance and yield opportunities for both retail and enterprise participants.

Data of the Day

BNB Chain entered a "meme season" as speculative tokens tied to Binance founder Changpeng Zhao skyrocketed in value. Leading meme coin "4" reached a $243 million market cap, inspired by Zhao’s viral four-finger gesture symbolizing focus amid FUD. Other tokens such as PALU and 客服小何 posted gains exceeding two thousand percent, driving record onchain volumes.

Data from Bubblemaps showed over 100,000 traders joined the frenzy, with seventy percent currently in profit. Zhao acknowledged the surge on X but urged developers to keep building legitimate projects. Analysts said BNB’s meme coin rally underscores retail enthusiasm and speculative momentum, even as long-term fundamentals remain uncertain.

More Breaking News

• Traders on Hyperliquid priced Monad’s unlaunched MON token at a $15 billion valuation after pre-market MON-USD contracts opened with 3x leverage.
• The Bank of North Dakota and Fiserv will launch the state-backed Roughrider stablecoin next year, expanding interoperable digital payments infrastructure statewide.
• Changpeng Zhao’s YZi Labs launched a $1 billion builder fund on BNB Chain to support long-term development across DeFi and AI.
• Deutsche Bank will handle fiat deposits and withdrawals for Bullish’s Hong Kong and German exchanges as it deepens its global crypto partnerships.
• Coinbase introduced crypto staking in New York, letting residents earn yield on ETH, SOL, and other tokens after regulatory approval.
• Polygon activated its Rio upgrade on the PoS network, redesigning block production and validation to achieve faster finality and higher throughput.

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