NASDAQ Asks SEC for Prediction Markets Style Go-Ahead on Financial Products

NASDAQ may soon enter the prediction market space, with the seminal stock exchange filing the necessary paperwork with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a bid to secure the regulatory go-ahead.

The company is planning to offer prediction market products for products on the Nasdaq 100 and Nasdaq 100 indices, with NASDAQ seeking to offer binary options for outcomes on different financial products. 

NASDAQ Wants to Stick with SEC

According to the filing, the stock exchange wants to offer investors and interested parties the opportunity to place Yes/No trades ranging from $0.01 to $1 on certain outcomes being likely or unlikely. In the financial parlor, these market options are known as Outcome-Related Options. 

NASDAQ is trying to build upon the day trading field, which is a popular part of investing, offering the opportunity to make short-term investments with contracts expiring every day. 

NASDAQ executives have confirmed that they will focus on the NASDAQ 100 index as part of the company’s main push into the prediction markets space. 

Notably, NASDAQ is seeking regulatory approval from the SEC rather than the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which has been regulating the prediction market space, and has been looking to set a clear framework that definitely answers whether sports event contracts fall under the jurisdiction of states.

Stock Exchanges Are No Strangers to Prediction Markets

NASDAQ is turning to SC instead to avoid potential regulatory clashes and sticking purely with financial products for the time being. 

Other stock exchanges have also entered the prediction market space, notably CME Group and Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, which ended up spending $2 billion with Polymarket in 2025. 

CME Group notably partnered up with Flutter Entertainment to launch the dedicated FanDuel Predicts platform, a product that is meant to run parallel to FanDuel’s mainstay business units – the sportsbooks and online casino.