Donald Trump Jr. has joined the advisory board of blockchain-based prediction marketplace Polymarket after his venture capital firm 1789 Capital made a significant investment in the fast-growing platform.
The deal, announced in a press release on Wednesday, demonstrates both Polymarket’s ambition to expand its global footprint and 1789 Capital’s push into crypto infrastructure and alternative finance.
1789 Capital invests tens of millions in Polymarket, and Trump Jr. joins its advisory board.
According to a press release, 1789 Capital committed “tens of millions of dollars” to Polymarket after 18 months of discussions.
The investment aligns with the firm’s stated mission of backing technologies that fuel what it calls “American dynamism,” a theme increasingly popular among conservative venture investors focused on domestic innovation and self-sufficiency.
Founded in 2020, Polymarket allows users to bet on the outcomes of real-world events, from elections and court rulings to geopolitical conflicts.
The platform has processed over $8 billion in bets, including $2.5 billion during the 2024 US election cycle, and is currently the largest prediction market in the world by trading activity. In the first half of 2025 alone, users wagered approximately $6 billion on the platform.
Trump Jr., who will now advise Polymarket as it scales, said the company “cuts through media spin and so-called ‘expert’ opinions by letting people bet on things they truly believe will happen.
He added that the United States needed access to such a platform and said his appointment was part of a mission to "bring truth and transparency to everyone, including the United States."
Polymarket founder and CEO Shayne Coplan said the partnership with 1789 Capital “marks a significant milestone” for the company.
“We are proud to officially welcome 1789 Capital as a strategic partner and Donald Trump Jr. to our advisory board as we continue to build our platform to reflect real-world sentiment in real time for all to see,” he said.
Polymarket, which has recently garnered attention for its rapid growth and regulatory challenges, is in the process of finalizing a $200 million funding round led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, which would value it at $1 billion and make it a unicorn.
It also completed its $112 million acquisition of QCEX, a derivatives exchange and clearinghouse licensed by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The move allowed Polymarket to re-enter the U.S. market after years of restrictions.
Polymarket has technically been off-limits to U.S. users since 2022, when it settled with regulators over unauthorized access by U.S. residents. But earlier this summer, both the Department of Justice and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission closed their investigations into the company without taking any action, clearing a major hurdle for its expansion.
Copeland, who revealed the FBI raided his home during the investigation, called the resolution vindication. “Justice prevailed. God bless America,” he wrote in a post on X.
The platform has also struck high-profile partnerships to expand its reach. In June, it became the official prediction market partner of Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, combining its predictions with artificial intelligence analysis from Musk’s xAI chatbot, Grok.
The partnership aims to combine real-time prediction markets with social commentary, raising Polymarket’s profile ahead of the 2025 US election cycle.
For 1789 Capital, the Polymarket investment is part of a broader strategy.
Omeed Malik, the company’s founder, said: “Polymarket stands at the intersection of free speech and financial innovation, empowering individuals with real-time truth in a world shrouded in noise, and we are proud to support its vision.
Prediction markets have long been praised for their accuracy compared to traditional polls, often capturing shifts in public sentiment faster than surveys.
Polymarket’s trading activity has surpassed sports betting giants like FanDuel and DraftKings, demonstrating its growing influence.
Donald Trump Jr. expands cryptocurrency footprint with Thumzup shares, Bitcoin US, and Telegram launch
Donald Trump Jr.’s involvement in cryptocurrency-related ventures has been steadily expanding since he took a $4 million stake in Thumzup Media Corp. in July.
The Los Angeles-based startup, which lets users pay for brand promotions on Instagram, faces steep losses despite holding Bitcoin on its balance sheet.
Nonetheless, the company’s board recently approved plans to hold up to $250 million in cryptocurrencies, expanding exposure beyond Bitcoin to assets like Ether, Solana, XRP, Dogecoin, and USDC.
The Trump family's cryptocurrency ties run deeper through Eric Trump's venture, American Bitcoin, which launched in March and is majority-owned by Hut 8. The company raised $220 million to fund a massive mining operation and Bitcoin reserves.
Some of the financing was done in Bitcoin rather than cash, according to SEC filings. American Bitcoin is preparing to go public on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ABTC through a merger with Gryphon Digital Mining, a deal that would give the Trump brothers and existing shareholders 98% control.
Expansion plans are already underway. On August 16, reports surfaced that US Bitcoin was considering acquisitions in Asia, including a publicly traded company in Japan, as it seeks to build corporate Bitcoin holdings on the scale of Michael Saylor’s strategy.
That same day, Trump Jr. launched a Telegram channel, The DeFiant Ones, as a hub for upcoming family-backed crypto projects. The channel quickly amassed nearly 13,000 subscribers, positioning itself as the only source of official updates while warning followers against imposters.
The developments signal a broader push by the Trump family into digital assets, consistent with President Donald Trump’s recent softening stance on cryptocurrencies.
