CFTC Files Brief Backing Kalshi vs Ohio Regulators

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed an amicus curiae brief on Tuesday with the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, supporting prediction market platform Kalshi in its dispute with Ohio regulators and arguing that states lack authority to treat federally approved event contracts as illegal gambling.

The brief challenges a March ruling by Chief Judge Sarah D. Morrison of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, who denied Kalshi's request for a preliminary injunction against Ohio's 2025 lawsuit. Ohio officials, including Ohio Casino Control Commission Executive Director Matthew Schuler, claimed Kalshi's event contracts on sports outcomes constituted unlicensed sports betting under state law. The CFTC contends that such contracts qualify as regulated swaps or derivatives under the Commodity Exchange Act, falling exclusively under federal jurisdiction because trading occurs across state lines.

CFTC Chairman Michael Selig stated that the district court took an unduly narrow view of the agency's authority. "The federal district court in Ohio took an improperly narrow view of the Commission's jurisdiction, and we are asking the Court of Appeals to correct...