Some Kalshi transfers are delayed during the Super Bowl
illustration by Cheng Xin/Getty Images
- Kalshi said it experienced delays in fund transfers due to a Super Bowl traffic surge.
- Kalshi's cofounder said on X that users' "money is safe and on the way."
- Kalshi and Polymarket are benefiting from a sharp interest in prediction markets.
Kalshi said that some transfers on its prediction markets app are delayed because of the high volume of traffic during the Super Bowl.
"Some deposits are delayed because of the amount of traffic and deposits we're getting," Kalshi cofounder Luana Lopes Lara wrote on X on Sunday evening. "Your money is safe and on the way, it will just take longer to land."
On X, some Kalshi users said that they felt relieved to receive an explanation for why their deposits did not go through. Others demanded a refund, saying they saw no point in placing bets if the money didn't arrive until halftime.
The company saw a significant spike in platform volume on Sunday. In an X post, Kalshi said it saw over $325 million in volume less than an hour before the championship game started.
Kalshi, founded in 2018, lets users bet on the outcome of events such as elections, sports matches, and economic indicators. For the Super Bowl, people could bet on the outcome of the New England Patriots versus the Seattle Seahawks game, as well as on which commercials would run and which song Bad Bunny would play first during his halftime show.
The startup and its rival, Polymarket, are winners of a big surge in interest in prediction markets. In addition to scheduled events, users can now also bet on questions ranging from the popularity of Labubu dolls to Elon Musk's net worth.