PrizePicks Bids Canada Adieu, Doubles Down on US Push

PrizePicks has pulled the plug on its Ontario, Canada operations, with the company doubling down on the United States instead. 

The company, which is primarily known for its daily fantasy sports offering, has recently been expanding into prediction markets, an exciting new space bringing a ton of opportunity for mainstream and DFS platforms alike. 

PrizePicks Winds Down in Canada, Focuses on the US 

PrizePicks decision follows an intervention by the regulator, the Canadian Lottery Coalition, which argued that international liquidity is not permitted, the model that the company was using to offer players enough worthwhile options to explore in peer-to-peer games such as DFS and online poker.

Essentially, PrizePicks was collating prize pools from across a larger geography, with the ongoing regulatory pushback making it harder for the company to offer local players in Ontario more worthwhile options. 

The platform is ending deposits as early as Tuesday, March 10, with the platform shutting down on April 3. Users will have until a day earlier, April 2 to withdraw their balances. 

The company described its decision as “difficult” and said that it had no other choice but to refocus its efforts on the United States instead. The company said:

“On March 3, PrizePicks announced its planned exit from the Canadian market. We are currently hyper-focused on our continued expansion across the US and delivering the best product experience for our players.”

PrizePicks Already Has a Solid US Footprint

PrizePicks is already present in all 50 states in the USA, with the company offering different versions of its products. 

Player picks, for example, are available in 36 states, and the prediction market offshoot, PrizePicks Predicts, is live in 35 jurisdictions as well, giving the company a very strong foothold in the country. The company was recently acquired by Allwyn.

Recently, PrizePicks’ competitor, Underdog, announced it is laying off 125 people. A similar move was undertaken by DraftKings, a sports betting major with a strong presence in prediction markets, with the company pushing further into AI adoption and cost-savings.