A federal judge in Ohio rejected Kalshi’s argument that its sports prediction markets are federally regulated contracts, ruling that state gambling laws apply. The Ohio Casino Control Commission is seeking to block Kalshi’s operation in the state, and the company said it would appeal.
The ruling subjects Kalshi’s sports markets in Ohio to state gambling requirements and could affect its ability to operate there.
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A federal judge in Arizona issued a preliminary injunction on 5 May blocking state prosecutors from pursuing gambling-related charges against Kalshi, according to the report. The judge ruled that federal law likely pre-empts Arizona gambling statutes in this case because Kalshi operates under Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight; the state had brought 20 misdemeanor counts.
Washington asked a federal judge on 6 April to remand its civil enforcement case against Kalshi to state court, arguing that the action rests entirely on state law. The state said Kalshi’s federal pre-emption defence did not justify removal and sought attorneys’ fees and costs; the judge’s decision was not stated.
A Nevada federal judge remanded the Gaming Control Board’s lawsuit against Kalshi to state court this week, according to the report. Judge Miranda Du found the Board’s claims arose under state law and denied Kalshi’s request to have the case heard in federal court; the Board is seeking a permanent injunction against the prediction market’s sports event contracts.
US District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley granted a preliminary injunction in Blue Lake Rancheria v. Kalshi in California on Wednesday. The order bars Kalshi from offering sports contracts on the plaintiff tribes’ lands and requires the tribes to provide boundary maps by 13 November; Kalshi must report its compliance steps within 21 days.
A San Francisco federal judge has blocked Kalshi from listing sports event contracts on land belonging to the California tribes that are suing it. Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley, who sits in the Northern District of California, granted the tribes a preliminary injunction on Wednesday in the case Blue Lake Rancheria v. Kalshi.
It was reported that an Illinois federal judge found Kalshi's sports event contracts likely qualify as swaps late the previous week. The outlet also reported that Ohio regulators had launched a separate enforcement push against prediction markets.
A federal judge in Illinois has found that sports event contracts offered by Kalshi are likely swaps under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA), and that several Illinois laws regulating those contracts are likely preempted by federal law. U.S. District Judge Martha Pacold granted the plaintiffs' preliminary injunction requests in part, according to the ruling. The plaintiffs were Kalshi, Coinbase and the CFTC, acting against state regulators.