Washington Court Orders Kalshi to Halt Most Event Contracts

A Washington state court has ordered the prediction market platform Kalshi to cease offering most of its event contracts to residents within the state, finding the company likely operates an illegal gambling operation under local law. The ruling, issued by King County Superior Court Judge John McHale on Thursday, August 13, 2026, requires Kalshi to implement geofencing technology to block Washington users from accessing restricted markets by August 19 and to deploy a more sophisticated system by September 2.

The order stems from a lawsuit filed by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown in March, which argued that Kalshi's contracts on sports, elections, politics, entertainment, culture, technology, and science violate the state's strict gambling laws. Judge McHale's preliminary injunction, first granted in July, found that Kalshi's offerings likely constitute illegal wagering on uncertain events. The final order on Thursday solidified these restrictions and added a ban on advertising the restricted contracts to Washington consumers, ruling that such promotion constitutes unfair or deceptive practices.

"Kalshi has gotten rich promoting wagers on sports, elections, natural...