Quick Overview
Contents
- Beginning March 30, Polymarket will implement trading fees across nearly all market categories, including politics, finance, culture, weather, and technology
- Cryptocurrency markets will face the steepest fees, reaching 1.8% at the 50% probability threshold, while sports betting maintains the lowest rate at 0.75%
- The platform launches a referral initiative offering 30% commission on direct referrals and 10% on secondary referrals, valid for six months
- Participation in the referral system requires a minimum trading history of $10,000 in total volume
- Enhanced market integrity protocols now prohibit insider trading, illicit information sharing, and manipulation by outcome-influencing parties
The prediction market platform Polymarket has announced a comprehensive fee restructuring that takes effect on March 30, introducing charges across virtually all trading categories. This update arrives bundled with a commission-based referral system and strengthened integrity guidelines.
Currently, the platform only applies trading fees to cryptocurrency and sports-related contracts. The revised framework will incorporate politics, finance, economics, culture, weather, technology, and additional market segments.
Polymarket employs a dynamic fee calculation tied to probability rather than implementing fixed percentages. Charges reach their maximum when outcome probabilities hover near 50%, then diminish as certainty increases toward either extreme.
Category-Specific Fee Breakdown
Cryptocurrency markets will experience the platform’s most substantial fees following this transition. The maximum rate at 50% probability will climb to 1.8%, representing an increase from the current 1.56%.
Sports-related markets will continue offering the most competitive rates for platform users. Maximum effective charges will advance to 0.75% at 50% probability, compared to the existing 0.44%.
Remaining categories will feature maximum effective rates ranging from 1% to 1.56%. To illustrate: a $50 wager on a sports outcome priced at 50% probability would incur $0.38 in fees versus the current $0.22.
Maker orders that contribute liquidity to the platform’s order book remain eligible for rebate compensation. These rebates draw from taker fees and are distributed daily in USDC stablecoin.
Rebate calculations are determined by the proportion of a user’s provided liquidity that gets matched and executed. The platform confirmed it’s broadening its maker rebate initiative as part of this comprehensive update.
New Affiliate System for Active Traders
Coinciding with the fee modifications, Polymarket unveiled its referral compensation structure. Qualification requires users to have completed at least $10,000 in cumulative trading volume.
Qualified participants can create personalized referral links without restrictions on distribution. When new users register via these links and commence trading, the referrer receives a percentage of generated fees.
For an introductory period, referrers collect 30% of fees from their direct signups. Additionally, they receive 10% of fees from indirect referrals—users brought in by their original referrals.
Referral compensation continues for 180 days following a new user’s registration. The platform has indicated this timeframe may be modified at its discretion.
This program expands upon a previous limited trial. It’s now being deployed platform-wide as part of the revised incentive architecture.
Polymarket has simultaneously introduced enhanced market integrity standards with these modifications. The updated guidelines apply to both its international cryptocurrency platform and its CFTC-regulated domestic exchange.
The protocols identify three prohibited trading behavior categories. These encompass trading based on stolen confidential data, acting on illegally obtained information, and trading by parties capable of influencing event outcomes.
Users can now flag questionable activity via newly created Market Integrity sections on the platform. These sections also provide comprehensive details regarding the updated regulations.
The referral program’s six-month reward period and $10,000 volume threshold are presently in force, though Polymarket maintains authority to modify these parameters in the future.
