Pred Just Raised $2.5M-But Can It Outrun the Sportsbook Giants?

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Pred, a sports prediction exchange, has somehow convinced investors to hand over $2.5 million in seed funding led by Accel, with Coinbase Ventures (via BEF) and Reverie throwing in their two cents. The cash will be used to grow the team, deepen liquidity (whatever that means), and prepare for a global launch-because nothing says “global” like trading outcomes of events where humans kick balls.

High-Performance Infrastructure on Base

Pred, a peer-to-peer sports prediction exchange, has secured $2.5 million in seed funding led by Accel, with BEF by Coinbase Ventures and Reverie playing along. The investment will accelerate team growth (read: hiring more people to explain blockchain to each other), deepen liquidity (a word that sounds impressive but probably involves spreadsheets), and support global onboarding as Pred builds exchange-grade infrastructure tailored for sports prediction markets-because nothing says “fun” like betting on whether a soccer player will score a hat trick.

The platform, now in private beta, is onboarding traders through an invite-only program ahead of a wider rollout. Built on Base, Coinbase’s layer-2 blockchain, Pred delivers 200-millisecond trade execution and spreads under 2%, positioning itself as the fastest sports prediction exchange in the market-assuming your definition of “fast” is slower than a sloth on espresso.

“Prediction markets have proven their value for episodic events, but sports represent an entirely different scale of opportunity-continuous, global, and deeply liquid,” said Prayank Swaroop, partner at Accel. “Pred is building purpose-built infrastructure for this market rather than retrofitting general-purpose tools. That’s the kind of focused execution we back.” Translation: “We’re not sure what this is, but it sounds like a good idea.”

Traditional sportsbooks dominate the $500 billion global sports betting industry, controlling odds and risk internally. Pred takes a different path: an exchange model where traders buy and sell positions directly with one another. Prices are set by supply and demand, reflecting collective sentiment rather than house odds-because nothing says “fairness” like letting a bunch of people on the internet decide if Ronaldo will miss a penalty shot.

“Sports prediction is a $500 billion global industry still running on infrastructure that punishes winners,” said Amit Mahensaria, CEO and co-founder of Pred. “We built Pred to change that-a decentralized exchange where speed, transparency, and skill are rewarded, not penalized.” Translation: “We’re tired of losing money to sportsbooks that think ‘juice’ is just lemon slices on a bar.”

Pred’s model emphasizes transparent order books, market-driven pricing, and on-chain settlement, appealing to traders who approach sports markets with the same rigor as financial markets. With fresh capital, the company plans to recruit talent from financial and sports industries and strengthen liquidity through institutional partnerships-because nothing says “growth” like convincing banks to take bets on basketball.

Pred’s ambition is to become the global hub for sports prediction trading, reshaping how markets price and trade sports outcomes. Or, as the rest of us would call it: “A very niche way to waste time and money.”

FAQ ❓

  • What is Pred? Pred is a peer-to-peer sports prediction exchange built on Base, Coinbase’s layer-2 blockchain. In other words, it’s the kind of thing that makes you wonder if someone finally taught a computer to bet like a seasoned pro.
  • Where is Pred available? Pred is live in private beta with global onboarding planned after its invite-only rollout. So, if you want in, start networking with people who know people who know the investors.
  • How does Pred differ from sportsbooks? Pred uses an exchange model where traders set prices through supply and demand instead of house odds. Because nothing says “trust” like letting algorithms guess if a tennis player will win a match.
  • What will the new funding support? The $2.5 million round will expand the team, boost liquidity, and accelerate worldwide trader growth. Or, as the founders might say, “We’re going to spend money to make money by spending more money.”

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2026-02-17 21:57