pUSD, short for Polymarket USD, is the collateral token that powers trading on Polymarket. Your account balance is held in pUSD on the Polygon network, and every YES/NO share pair is backed by exactly $1 of it.
What is pUSD on Polymarket?
According to Polymarket's deposit documentation, when you deposit USDC (native) or USDC.e (bridged), it is wrapped into pUSD through the Collateral Onramp. From then on:
- your trading balance is shown in pUSD;
- buying shares locks pUSD as collateral;
- winning shares redeem for $1.00 of pUSD each;
- rewards and rebates are paid in pUSD.
When you withdraw, pUSD is unwrapped back to USDC and bridged to the network you choose.
Example
You bridge 100 USDC from Base. It arrives as 100 pUSD. You buy 200 YES shares at 40¢, locking 80 pUSD. The market resolves YES, you redeem the 200 shares for 200 pUSD, and you withdraw 220 pUSD (your 200 plus the 20 you didn't use) back to USDC.
Why pUSD matters
- Full backing. Every share pair is backed by $1 of pUSD locked in the contract, so a winning share is always worth exactly $1.00.
- Withdrawal care. Some exchanges no longer accept pUSD deposits directly. Use Polymarket's withdrawal flow, which converts it for you.
- Not an investment. pUSD is a dollar unit for trading, not a token designed to gain value.
pUSD vs USDC
USDC is a general-purpose stablecoin issued by Circle. pUSD is Polymarket's own collateral, created from USDC on deposit and turned back into USDC on withdrawal.