Judge bars Arizona from regulating prediction market operators and pauses prosecution of Kalshi
A federal judge blocked Arizona from enforcing gambling laws against Kalshi, pausing both regulation and criminal prosecution.Summary
A federal judge temporarily barred Arizona from enforcing its gambling laws against predictive market operators like Kalshi, following a lawsuit filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The ruling also halts Arizona’s criminal case against Kalshi, which faced 20 misdemeanor counts for allegedly accepting bets on political outcomes and sports. The CFTC argued that Arizona’s actions intruded on the federal government’s exclusive power to regulate national swaps markets. While the judge previously denied Kalshi’s initial attempts to halt the case, he has now issued a temporary block pending a full explanation expected Friday evening. Kalshi maintains it is a financial marketplace, subject to federal regulation, not a gambling operation governed by state laws.
(Source：Norfolk Virginian-Pilot)