BETBY excludes controversial markets from new predictions platform

BETBY is getting in on the predictions hype, though it has paid extra attention to ensuring its own platform avoids some of the more controversial sides of the sector.

The Malta-based sportsbook solutions firm took its predictions platform, BETBY Predictions, live today. The company plans to make the platform available to all companies in its partner network.

BETBY has clearly taken note of the global growth of prediction platforms worldwide, with Kalshi and Polymarket valued at $22bn and $9bn respectively, as of March 2026.

It has also clearly taken note of traditional gaming space’s interest in predictions as a new vertical, although some stakeholders like the American Gaming Association (AGA) remain very much opposed.

Fanatics, DraftKings and FanDuel – in that order – have all launched a predictions platform in the US, while UK betting exchange Matchbook joined the fray late last year, and the GIbraltar government has licensed its first predictions platform too.

“BETBY Predictions represents a natural evolution of the sportsbook experience,” said Kirill Nekrasov, Head of Innovation and R&D. “We’re taking the core principles of betting and applying them to the world beyond sports. 

“This is about turning global moments into interactive opportunities for players, in a way that’s both scalable and responsible.”

BETBY takes note of good taste

The growth of predictions has not gone by without controversy. Firstly, there is the legal debate as to whether the platforms are considered gambling or not. 

The regulators of European nations like Belgium, France and Portugal say yes, as do US states like Nevada and Arizona, but the US federal regulator for the space, the Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC), says no.

It appears though that bookmakers with an interest in predictions like the firms mentioned above are more than happy for their prediction platforms to sit alongside their more traditional sportsbooks – and this is the market BETBY is looking to tap into.

However, it has also taken note of one of the other more controversial elements of predictions – the markets people are able to predict. One of the big selling points for Kalshi and Polymarket is their range of political and current affairs events.

Markets have ranged from who will become the next President of the US, a typical market similar to what would be offered on a traditional sportsbook’s politics page, to darker ones like the likelihood of US strikes on nations like Venezuela and Iran, the chances of ceasefires in wars, or for China to invade Taiwan.

The morbid nature of these bets has caught the attention of mainstream media like the BBC. It has also raised concerns over insider trading, due to the potential for government officials with knowledge of upcoming decisions to place predictions, market bets and cash in.

BETBY states that its own predictions platform has been developed with careful safeguards, with ‘highly sensitive or controversial topics’ like geopolitics, active conflicts and wars, and events ‘involving human suffering’ excluded from the platform.

The firm also stresses that it retains ‘full control over market creation, ensuring that all content is carefully curated and reviewed, with a clear commitment to responsible and appropriate market selection”.

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