Kalshi's 15-minute gold markets generated approximately $5 million in estimated fees during September, compared with $2.6 million for Ether contracts, according to data from Predict Charts. The gold contracts enable traders to take positions on whether gold will rise or fall over 15-minute intervals.
Bitcoin remained the dominant market on the platform, generating $60.4 million in estimated fees for the month.
The strong performance of gold markets reflects broader expansion in Kalshi's commodities business. The company reported in September that commodities trading volume had reached $400 million within seven months, more than four times the volume its crypto markets had generated at the same stage.
Short-duration markets have become increasingly significant to Kalshi's business. Analysis found that 15-minute crypto, commodity, and financial markets generated $20.4 million in fees during the seven days through October 5, accounting for 80% of the platform's non-sport fees during that period.
In September, gold contracts recorded 542 million contracts traded, surpassing Ether's 15-minute contracts at 318 million. Ether's short-duration contracts had shown rapid growth earlier in the year, increasing to 233 million contracts from 6.1 million between January and July.
The higher fee generation from short-duration markets relative to their trading volume stems from Kalshi's fee structure, which charges higher fees as a percentage of volume on contracts priced near 50-50 odds compared to heavy favorites or long shots.
