Nevada regulator issues Kalshi with cease-and-desist order
State's Gaming Control Board deems the New York-based firm’s operations “unlawful” as Kalshi says it looks forward to a “swift resolution”
The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) has issued a cease-and-desist order to Kalshi for offering sports event contracts in the Silver State.
The New-York based firm has been given until 5pm on March 14 to shut down its operations following the order, which is the first public pushback from a state regulator against the burgeoning sports event contracts space.
In a letter signed by NGCB chair Kirk Hendrick, the regulator told Kalshi that offering contracts on sporting events and election outcomes is “unlawful in Nevada, unless and until approved as licensed gaming by the Nevada Gaming Commission.”
The letter also listed multiple state regulations which Kalshi was violating, with a reminder that the company’s conduct may result in criminal charges.
Furthermore, any past wrongdoing by Kalshi in Nevada remains subject to criminal and civil penalties, while any future misconduct will be seen by the NGCB as “willful violations.”
Hendrick added: “Every sports pool in Nevada must undergo an extensive investigation prior to licensing, must adhere to strict regulation once licensed, and must pay all applicable taxes and fees.
“Any unlawful attempts to circumvent Nevada’s right to regulate gaming activity within its borders will be met with the full force of criminal and civil penalties.”
A Kalshi spokesperson said: “While we’re disappointed with the Commission’s assessment, Kalshi has always held the utmost respect for regulators and the regulatory process.
“We’ve been a federally regulated exchange for over four years and a federally regulated clearinghouse for about six months. We are proud to have paved the way for prediction markets to thrive in the US.
“We look forward to a swift resolution to this matter and to ensuring that Americans continue to have access to safe, regulated, and transparent prediction markets.”
Kalshi had initially launched sports event contracts for the Super Bowl before expanding into multiple sports. The company was effectively live in all 50 US states, even those without legal sports betting.
Kalshi first filed with the US derivatives regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to list contracts on US sports back in January.
The move into sports came following success in US presidential election contracts after Kalshi secured a legal win against the CFTC to bring the product to market.
Crypto.com pushed into the sports event contracts space just before Christmas, with Kalshi following soon after. The CFTC had asked the pair to pull the respective offerings, with both refusing to do so.
Kalshi traded $27m on the Super Bowl. While traditional sportsbooks did not disclose handle, FanDuel accepted more than 16 million bets on the game.
Robinhood, which had success in the events contracts sector around the presidential election, had tapped Kalshi to also offer a Super Bowl market.
However, the California-based firm pulled its plans after 24 hours following a request from the CFTC, with plans to launch a more “comprehensive” platform later in 2025.
Kalshi later informed the CFTC of its intentions to launch single-game event contracts in February. Current markets included the UEFA Champions League winner, NBA champion, and NHL winners.
President Donald Trump has also appointed Kalshi board member Brian Quintenz as the new chair of the CFTC, in what appears to be a pro-vertical step.