Fanatics Acquires BGC Regulated Exchange and Clearinghouse

Fanatics, the global sports merchandise and betting company, has agreed to acquire a federally regulated exchange and clearinghouse, a move that grants it direct control over its prediction markets infrastructure. The company announced on Monday, July 27, 2026, that it will purchase Water Street Labs and CX Clearinghouse from financial conglomerate BGC Group. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The acquisition provides Fanatics with ownership of two key entities regulated by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Water Street Labs is a registered Designated Contract Market, an exchange for trading event-based derivatives, while CX Clearinghouse is a registered Derivatives Clearing Organization that settles trades. This allows Fanatics to internally manage the listing, execution, and clearing of prediction market contracts, which let users trade on the outcomes of future events ranging from sports to elections and economic indicators.

Previously, Fanatics Markets, the company's prediction markets platform launched in December 2025, operated as an introducing broker relying on third-party infrastructure. The company stated that owning the full regulatory and...