Polymarket to upgrade its exchange infrastructure with a new order book and launch Polymarket USD stablecoin

Prominent on-chain prediction market platform Polymarket said it is deploying a major upgrade to its trading infrastructure, including a rebuilt order book and the introduction of its own stablecoin to be used as collateral. The firm called the effort its “biggest change to date.”

What Polymarket is changing

Polymarket said the upgrade will be rolled out over the next few weeks and will include a rebuilt trading engine, upgraded smart contracts, and a new collateral token, Polymarket USD. The firm also said the change is intended to move the platform off USDC.e.

In its announcement, Polymarket described the upgrade as its largest infrastructure change since launch, adding that it is designed to deliver faster execution, lower gas, and a cleaner foundation for future development.

Transition timeline and operational impact

Polymarket said the changes are expected to be implemented over the coming weeks, with a brief period during which all open orders on the platform will need to be cancelled. The firm said it will provide traders with at least “a few days” of advanced notice before cancelling unfilled orders.

While Polymarket said it does not expect a difficult transition for most users, it noted that builders, API-only traders, and power users may be more affected. For example, users running trading bots will need to update their software development kits to support the new order book structure.

More advanced users may also need to use a smart contract “wrap” function to move USDC or USDC.e into Polymarket’s new stablecoin and collateral token, Polymarket USD.

Collateral shift from USDC.e to Polymarket USD

Polymarket has historically used USDC.e on Ethereum and Polygon, described as a bridged version of Circle’s dollar-backed stablecoin USDC. The platform’s move to its own token, which Polymarket said will be backed 1:1 with Circle’s USDC, has prompted speculation among users about potential yield improvements for funds held on the platform and the possibility of a revenue increase for the firm.

Potential knock-on effects for POLY token expectations

Some users also speculated that the stablecoin rollout could support the planned launch of Polymarket’s native token, POLY. However, predictors on Myriad, a prediction market from Decrypt’s parent company Dastan, said they do not believe POLY will launch by May, assigning odds of 11% for a launch before that time.