Polymarket is rolling out its most significant infrastructure upgrade, featuring a rebuilt trading system, new smart contracts, an updated central limit order book, and a native collateral token called Polymarket USD backed 1:1 by USDC.

The CTF Exchange V2 upgrade brings faster order matching, a simplified order structure, support for EIP-1271 signatures for smart contract wallets, account abstraction, and improved fee handling.

Polymarket USD will replace bridged USDC.e across the platform to tighten settlement control, improve liquidity consistency, and simplify on-chain activity.

This upgrade follows ongoing controversy around geopolitically themed markets and scrutiny of how outcomes are resolved in prediction markets.

All existing order books will be cleared and trading paused briefly during a scheduled maintenance window, with timing announced in advance.

Open orders will be canceled during a short maintenance window, with at least one week of advance notice; full rollout is expected to take two to three weeks.

During migration, orders books will be cleared again and developers with bots or SDKs must update to the new order structure and re-sign orders.

The move comes amid competitive pressure from Kalshi, Coinbase, Crypto.com, and DraftKings, and Polymarket is pursuing additional capital at a near-$20 billion valuation, though no POLY token details are provided in the announcement.

For everyday users, changes should be mostly seamless, with traders likely noticing smoother performance and faster order execution.

POLY governance token airdrop, confirmed previously, remains separate and contingent on a strong U.S. relaunch; no POLY details or timelines are given in this release.

The Block notes Polymarket is backed by Intercontinental Exchange, tracing its launch to 2020 and ongoing fundraising referenced but not detailed.

Historically, Polymarket used UMA’s optimistic oracle for outcome resolution; the new approach could internalize resolution to some extent and address concerns about governance influence.