This week: Lumina Markets launches prediction market app for US traders

Also: Sporttrade clears a CFTC hurdle in its pivot to prediction markets, and B2Bux lets operators launch pack ripping in weeks as the category explodes to $4B.

October 22, 2026

Lumina Markets launches prediction market app for US traders

The news: Lumina Markets has launched its web and mobile app for US customers, giving retail traders a regulated way into event contracts listed on ForecastEx, the CFTC-designated exchange affiliated with Interactive Brokers. The New York company is backed by Interactive Brokers Group founder Thomas Peterffy, who invested in a personal capacity, and is led by founder and CEO Zalan Gaal.

Zoom in: Contracts are simple Yes or No questions priced between $0 and $1, on topics like Federal Reserve rate decisions, US tariffs, control of Congress, daily temperatures in Los Angeles, and which AI lab delivers the leading model. Lumina doesn’t offer sports contracts and has no gamification mechanics. “The hard part is building something serious enough to be worth their time and simple enough that they do not have to be specialists, without it turning into a game along the way,” Gaal said in a press statement.

Why it matters: Sports contracts have been at the center of prediction markets’ legal fights with states this year, and Lumina is sitting them out entirely to pitch a calmer product to people with views on the economy, politics, and tech. As a CFTC-registered introducing broker, it doesn’t need its own exchange, and for ForecastEx it’s another route to retail traders. “A market works better the more people can participate in it,” Peterffy said.

Sporttrade clears a CFTC hurdle in its pivot to prediction markets

The news: The CFTC has registered Sporttrade as a derivatives clearing organization, permitting it to clear fully collateralized futures, options on futures, and swaps, according to the agency’s filings list. The registration is dated Friday (Oct 16). Sporttrade’s application to become a Designated Contract Market is still listed as pending.

Zoom in: Sporttrade applied for both federal licenses earlier this year, then shut down its state-licensed betting exchange, which closed for business on May 25. New Jersey users lost access that day, while customers in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, and Virginia had until June 25 to withdraw their funds. CEO Alex Kane has said the company was “kind of caught in the slow lane” under state regulation while federally regulated rivals went national.

Why it matters: Clearing is one half of the federal setup. A DCM designation is what would let Sporttrade run its own exchange nationwide, the status ProphetX and Novig won back to back in June. Few companies have been at sports exchanges longer than Sporttrade, and it now has to make up ground on the rivals that went federal first.

B2Bux lets operators launch pack ripping in weeks as the category explodes to $4B

The news: B2Bux CEO Viktor Atanasovski joined the BettingStartups Podcast to talk about the Macedonia-based startup’s turnkey platform for pack ripping and mystery boxes, a category it calls “revealing experiences.” B2Bux handles the tech, legal opinions, payment processing, and card supply, and Atanasovski said it can set operators up “in couple of weeks with the whole infrastructure.” The company has a few clients signed, pre-seed backing, and a spot in the a16z Scout program, and is now raising a few million dollars.

Zoom in: Players open virtual packs of Pokémon cards, sports cards, and other collectibles, an RNG picks the outcome, and an image of a real physical card pops out that they can return for credit, ship home, or vault for seven days. The business model will look familiar to anyone who has bought a casino platform: a one-time setup fee, then a share of GGR. B2Bux is also launching its own B2C site, Ripley.us, which Atanasovski calls “the biggest showcase on our platform.”

Why it matters: Pack ripping is having a moment in the US, and B2Bux is pitching the operators who want in without building the stack themselves. Those coming from sweepstakes lean heavily toward rips over boxes, Atanasovski said. Running Ripley.us is how B2Bux plans to learn acquisition, retention, and unit economics before coaching clients through them: “We want to just do the homework ourselves first.” The 12-month goals are at least 10 operators live and two platforms integrated as distribution partners.

Listen to the full podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.

  • 🆕 Stadium Vault is hiring a Finance Manager to bring its accounting in-house as the company’s first finance hire. Greater Toronto Area, Canada (on-site). (View job)

  • 🆕 Splash Sports is looking for a Lifecycle Marketing Specialist to turn first-time depositors into habitual monthly players. United States - Remote. (View job)

  • 🆕 ProphetX is seeking a Product Manager to own the product lifecycle from ideation to launch and beyond. Remote - USA. (View job)

  • 🆕 SharpSports is hiring a Backend / Full-Stack Software Engineer to build new integrations with sportsbooks, prediction markets, and other sports data providers. New York City, remote or hybrid. (View job)

  • 🆕 A fast-growing B2B iGaming technology business is looking for a Legal and Compliance Officer to handle legal, regulatory, and compliance matters across the group. Remote. (View job)

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