NY, IL Governors Ban Insider Use in Prediction Markets

New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed Executive Order 60 on April 22, prohibiting state officials and employees from using nonpublic information obtained through their duties to profit or avoid losses in prediction markets, or from assisting others in doing so. The order, which took effect immediately, applies to those serving at the governor's pleasure or appointed by public authorities. A day earlier, on April 21, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker issued a similar directive through Executive Order 2026-04, barring state employees from leveraging confidential information in prediction markets or event contracts and extending the prohibition to aiding third parties.

Both measures aim to prevent corruption amid the rapid expansion of prediction markets, platforms where users bet on real-world outcomes such as elections, sports, geopolitical events and military actions. Hochul described the initiative as a safeguard against public servants exploiting inside knowledge for personal gain. "Getting rich by betting on inside information is corruption, plain and simple," she said in an announcement, adding that the sector operates in an "ethical Wild West" lacking sufficient standards to...