A growing sweepstakes sports trading platform received a $75 million funding round in preparation of entering the prediction market industry.
Key Takeaways
- Novig has raised over $105 million since last September.
- The sports trading platform will use the funding to continue innovating its product.
- Novig has applied for CFTC approval to launch a prediction market platform.
Novig, founded in 2021 by Jacob Fortinsky and Kelechi Ukah, announced the Series B round on Wednesday, led by Pantera Capital. Multicoin Capital, Makers Fund, and Edge Equity also invested in the peer-to-peer trading company.
Combined with an $18 million funding round from September 2025 from investors Forerunner, Perceptive Ventures, and NFX, Novig raised more than $105 million in capital in less than a year.
Enjoying Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account“We chose to partner with the best crypto venture firms in the world to further accelerate our plans to make Novig the most efficient and liquid sports prediction market in the world,” said Fortinsky, who’s also Novig’s CEO. “Others are using prediction market technology to financialize new markets with unproven demand. We leverage it to fix broken markets where demand already exists.”
Moving on up
Novig is currently seeking Designated Contract Market approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which federally regulates prediction markets. The company plans to use the new capital to spearhead product innovation to offer financial markets and take sports to a different level with prediction markets.
Novig has grown quickly over the last couple of years, which has greatly helped attract investors. The platform’s trading volume grew by 10 times in 2025, and the company reported an annualized volume of $4 billion. Available in more than 35 states, Novig once operated in more before lawmaker in multiple jurisdictions banned sweepstakes casino gaming. Gaining CFTC approval and moving to a prediction market model would put Novig in all 50 states, barring the outcome of court battles in Nevada and Massachusetts.
“Novig combines the cultural heartbeat of sports with the transparency and efficiency of prediction markets,” Ukah, Novig’s CTO, said. “Most prediction market volume today is on sports, yet those platforms weren’t built with sports or sports bettors in mind. We are delivering a better exchange that is built by sports traders, for sports traders.”
Built for prediction success?
Novig has been using a sweepstakes model, but its sports betting platform, which offers spreads, moneylines, totals, and props, operates as a trading exchange between users, who don’t pay a commission fee. Novig has already built a name for itself in the industry and has a trading team on staff. The company would be able to quickly transition into a prediction market ready to compete with Kalshi, Polymarket, DraftKings Predictions, and FanDuel Predicts.
“Novig is proving that prediction markets can fundamentally reshape sports betting by removing the exploitative middleman,” said Paul Veradittakit, managing partner at Pantera Capital. “Their peer-to-peer exchange delivers what traditional sportsbooks can't: better odds, fairer market structure, and alignment between platform success and user profitability.
“When 23% of users are profitable compared to 2% on traditional platforms, it's clear this is a foundational change to the industry. We're excited to lead this round and support Jacob, Kelechi, and the team as they build a sports prediction market that actually puts bettors first.”
