Polymarket raised $2 billion from Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), owner of the New York Stock Exchange. Tempo, a Stripe-backed blockchain payments firm, secured $500 million in a Series A at a $5 billion valuation. Kalshi closed over $300 million in funding. These three accounted for over 70% of October's total.​ October Second Only to 2021 PeakThe $3.877 billion total trails only November 2021's $7 billion record. Data comes from DefiLlama, a blockchain analytics platform tracking venture activity. October's figure marks sharp capital concentration compared to 2025 monthly averages.​ Prediction Markets Draw CapitalTwo of the three largest deals went to prediction market platforms where users bet on real-world events. ICE's investment valued Polymarket at $9 billion. Kalshi raised funds weeks later while expanding overseas.​ Payments Infrastructure Takes ThirdTempo builds stablecoin payment rails for cross-border transactions. Paradigm and Thrive Capital led the round, with Stripe backing. The raise positioned Tempo among the most valuable blockchain infrastructure startups. The $3.877 billion total trails only November 2021's $7 billion record. Data comes from DefiLlama, a blockchain analytics platform tracking venture activity. October's figure marks sharp capital concentration compared to 2025 monthly averages.​ Prediction Markets Draw CapitalTwo of the three largest deals went to prediction market platforms where users bet on real-world events. ICE's investment valued Polymarket at $9 billion. Kalshi raised funds weeks later while expanding overseas.​ Payments Infrastructure Takes ThirdTempo builds stablecoin payment rails for cross-border transactions. Paradigm and Thrive Capital led the round, with Stripe backing. The raise positioned Tempo among the most valuable blockchain infrastructure startups. Two of the three largest deals went to prediction market platforms where users bet on real-world events. ICE's investment valued Polymarket at $9 billion. Kalshi raised funds weeks later while expanding overseas.​ Payments Infrastructure Takes ThirdTempo builds stablecoin payment rails for cross-border transactions. Paradigm and Thrive Capital led the round, with Stripe backing. The raise positioned Tempo among the most valuable blockchain infrastructure startups. Tempo builds stablecoin payment rails for cross-border transactions. Paradigm and Thrive Capital led the round, with Stripe backing. The raise positioned Tempo among the most valuable blockchain infrastructure startups.