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Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: $ICE ), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), has invested $600 million U.S. in prediction market platform Polymarket.

The investment is part of a previously announced funding agreement between the NYSE parent and Polymarket and comes on top of a previous $1 billion U.S. investment made last October.

Intercontinental Exchange said that it also plans to buy up to $40 million U.S. in additional shares from existing Polymarket holders, bringing its total commitment close to $2 billion U.S.

Polymarket is a prediction market that lets users trade on the outcome of real-world events, from elections and economic data releases to sports and wars.

The backing from Intercontinental Exchange gives Polymarket fresh capital to fund its meteoric growth. Rival platform Kalshi recently raised more than $1 billion U.S.

The investment in Polymarket from Intercontinental Exchange comes as traditional market operators move to capitalize on the popularity of prediction markets.

Analysts say that if prediction markets gain widespread approval, they could sit alongside stocks and futures contracts as another way for traders to express views on future events.

However, prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi are coming under increasing scrutiny from lawmakers and being hit with lawsuits from U.S. states.

Critics claim that prediction markets encourage gambling addiction and are vulnerable to manipulation and insider trading.

Polymarket is taking steps to counter those criticisms. The company recently acquired a licensed exchange and clearinghouse and has also expanded its political lobbying.

ICE stock has declined 12% in the last year to trade at $155.96 U.S. per share.