Melanie Ellis, a partner at Northridge Law LLP, said at iGB L!VE 2026 that prediction markets sit between financial services and gambling. She called for regulatory coordination and clearer rules to address consumer protection and problem-gambling risks.
Clearer rules could help operators understand which consumer safeguards apply to prediction markets.
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Hesse minister-president Boris Rhein advocated easing regulatory restrictions on licensed gambling providers at an industry parliamentary evening in Wiesbaden on 2 September. Rhein said strengthening legal providers’ competitiveness would help counter illegal gambling.
JDigital director-general Jorge Hinojosa called for greater regulatory stability during a debate at Bet on Ceuta, according to the report. He argued that authorities should assess existing reforms before introducing further changes and said advertising can direct customers towards licensed operators; Spain’s DGOJ has opened a public consultation on a comprehensive reform of the Gambling Act.
European Lotteries argues that prediction markets carrying comparable risks should face equivalent protections. The association says these products can straddle financial services and gambling as they expand across Europe.
US state election officials are considering safeguards as trading on 2026 elections grows on platforms including Kalshi and Polymarket. Proposals include restrictions on election workers’ trading and public education about market prices. Court disputes continue over states’ authority to regulate prediction markets under gambling laws.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Innovation Advisory Committee discussed prediction-market contracts at its first meeting in Washington on 20 August, the report said. Participants debated self-certification of new contracts, with CME Group chief executive Terry Duffy saying about 2,500 had been submitted since January 2025 without opposition. The discussion followed a CFTC emergency order requiring Kalshi to continue serving New York customers after a state lawsuit alleged it operated an illegal gambling business.