Overview
- Polymarket activated a verified referral code called OREGON that gives new U.S. users a $50 trading bonus after a $20 first deposit, and the platform removed its app waitlist to let more West Coast users sign up quickly.
- Kalshi is running multiple region-targeted codes such as OREGONLIVE1, SYRACUSE and ALCOM15 that grant $10–$15 credits after small initial trades or a set number of event trades, with each code tied to specific state lists.
- As of July 4–5 the boards on both platforms showed live, rapidly shifting market prices for Round of 16 World Cup matches, with published probabilities and heavy short-term volume that reporters say reflect the promos driving more trading.
- Both services require identity verification, age and residency checks and exclude certain states (examples reported include AZ, IL, MA, MD, MI, MT, NJ, NV, OH), and bonus credits often carry use or withdrawal conditions.
- The offers speed user acquisition and raise immediate liquidity on event markets, but they also increase consumer exposure to financial loss and will be shaped next by verification enforcement, state rules and whether platforms expand or change promo mechanics.