Polymarket

Complete guide to trading on Polymarket through MoltMarket.

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Overview

Polymarket is a decentralized prediction market platform built on Polygon. Markets are settled on-chain using UMA's optimistic oracle, with USDC as collateral.

Key Features:

• Zero trading fees

• High liquidity ($1M-$20M major markets)

• On-chain settlement

• Global access (no KYC)

• Continuous trading 24/7

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Getting Started

1. Create Polygon Wallet

# Generate new wallet
moltmarket wallet create --network polygon

# Or import existing
moltmarket wallet import \
  --private-key-path ~/.ethereum/polygon.key \
  --network polygon

2. Fund Wallet with USDC

Bridge from Ethereum:

1. Visit Polygon Bridge

2. Connect Ethereum wallet

3. Bridge USDC to Polygon

4. Wait ~10 minutes for confirmation

Buy USDC on Polygon:

1. Use Uniswap on Polygon

2. Swap MATIC → USDC

3. Or deposit directly via Coinbase/Kraken

3. Configure MoltMarket

# ~/.moltmarket/config.yaml
platforms:
  polymarket:
    enabled: true
    network: polygon              # or polygon-mumbai for testnet
    wallet_address: "0x742d35..."
    private_key_path: ~/.moltmarket/polygon.key
    rpc_url: https://polygon-rpc.com

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API Architecture

Three API Endpoints

Gamma API (https://gamma-api.polymarket.com)

• Markets, events, search

• Public data (no auth required)

• Used by: market.search, market.get_data

Data API (https://data-api.polymarket.com)

• User positions, trades, analytics

• Public data (no auth required)

• Used by: portfolio.get_positions

CLOB API (https://clob.polymarket.com)

• Order placement, cancellation

• Requires API key authentication

• Used by: position.open, position.close

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Trading Flow

1. Approve USDC Spending (One-Time)

from moltmarket import approve_usdc_spending

# Approve Polymarket CTF contract to spend USDC
approve_usdc_spending(
    amount=10000,  # Approve $10,000
    platform="polymarket"
)

2. Place Order

agent.run("Buy $500 YES on presidential election market")

Behind the scenes:

1. Fetch market data from Gamma API

2. Calculate shares: shares = amount / price

3. Sign order with private key

4. Submit to CLOB API

5. Order matched on-chain

6. Shares minted via CTF contract

3. Monitor Position

agent.run("Show presidential election position")

Data sources:

• Current price: Gamma API

• Position shares: Data API

• P&L calculation: Client-side

4. Close Position

agent.run("Close presidential election position")

Settlement:

• Order placed on CLOB

• Shares sold on-chain

• USDC returned to wallet

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Smart Contracts

Key Contracts (Polygon Mainnet)

CTF Contract (Conditional Token Framework)

• Address: 0x4D97DCd97eC945f40cF65F87097ACe5EA0476045

• Purpose: Mint/burn outcome shares

• Used for: All position management

USDC Contract

• Address: 0x2791Bca1f2de4661ED88A30C99A7a9449Aa84174

• Purpose: Collateral for positions

Gas Fees

Typical gas costs (March 2026):

• Order placement: $0.50-2.50

• Position close: $0.50-2.50

• USDC approval: $1.00-3.00 (one-time)

Gas optimization:

# config.yaml
platforms:
  polymarket:
    gas_price_gwei: auto  # Uses Polygon network suggestion
    # or fixed: gas_price_gwei: 50

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Market Resolution

Resolution Process

1. Event Occurs - Real-world outcome determined

2. Oracle Proposes - UMA oracle proposes outcome

3. Challenge Period - 2-hour dispute window

4. Settlement - Winning shares → USDC (1:1)

Claiming Winnings

# Automatic settlement (recommended)
agent.run("Claim all resolved market winnings")

# Or manual
from moltmarket import claim_winnings

claim_winnings(
    market_id="0x1a2b3c...",
    platform="polymarket"
)

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Rate Limits

Public APIs (Gamma, Data):

• No rate limits

• Unlimited requests

CLOB API (Trading):

• No explicit limits

• Best practice: <10 req/sec

Blockchain RPC:

• Depends on provider

• Public RPCs: ~100 req/sec

• Infura/Alchemy: 500-1000 req/sec

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Best Practices

1. Monitor Gas Prices

from moltmarket import get_gas_price

gas = get_gas_price(network="polygon")
if gas > 100:  # gwei
    print("Gas high, wait for lower prices")

2. Use Limit Orders for Large Trades

# Better price execution
agent.run("Buy $2000 YES at limit price 0.46")

3. Check Orderbook Liquidity

# Before large trade
market = agent.run("Get market data for election market")
if market['orderbook']['depth']['asks'] < 50000:
    print("Insufficient liquidity, reduce position size")

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Troubleshooting

Issue: Transaction Fails

Cause: Insufficient USDC or MATIC for gas

Solution:

# Check balances
moltmarket wallet balance --network polygon

# Need both:
# - USDC for trading
# - MATIC for gas fees (~$1-5)

Issue: "Slippage Exceeded"

Cause: Price moved between order submission and execution

Solution:

# Increase slippage tolerance
agent.run("Buy $500 YES with 2% slippage tolerance")

Issue: USDC Approval Fails

Cause: Previous approval exists

Solution:

# Revoke old approval first
from moltmarket import revoke_approval
revoke_approval(contract="0x4D97...", platform="polymarket")

# Then approve again
approve_usdc_spending(amount=10000, platform="polymarket")

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Resources

• Polymarket Docs

• Polygon Bridge

• Polygon Gas Tracker

• UMA Oracle Docs

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Related Documentation

• Authentication - API authentication

• WebSocket Streaming - Real-time data

• Kalshi Integration - Compare platforms