Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) introduced a bill Monday that would prohibit prediction market platforms Calci and Polymarket from allowing users to bet on sporting events or play casino-style games.
The bipartisan bill would not apply to FanDuel and DraftKings, which are subject to state-by-state gambling laws rather than federal law.
“Sports betting contracts are sports betting, they just have a different name. Yet these contracts are now offered in all 50 states, clearly in violation of state and federal law,” Schiff said in a statement.
Gambling has become even more prominent in American culture since the Supreme Court’s decision in 2018 that allowed states to legalize sports betting. Total sports betting value increased from $4.9 billion in 2017 to $121.1 billion in 2023. Most major professional sports leagues currently have contracts with gambling companies, even though their star players could face prison terms for their alleged involvement in a money laundering conspiracy.
Prediction markets like Calci and Polymarket are regulated under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), allowing Schiff and Curtis to work on the market under federal jurisdiction rather than leaving it up to state-regulated sportsbooks. But these senators argue that there’s actually not much difference between betting on sports through federally regulated apps and betting on sports through state-regulated apps. For example, Kalsi’s Super Bowl transaction volume reached more than $1 billion this year, an increase of 2,700% year over year.
“Too many Utah youth are exposed to addictive sports betting and casino-style gaming contracts that are under state control rather than federal regulation,” Curtis said in a statement.
Curtis’s concerns about gambling addiction are valid. Researchers from the Qualcomm Institute and School of Medicine at the University of California, San Diego analyzed data on online search queries and found that once online sportsbooks became available, searches for help with gambling addiction increased by 61% and have continued to increase ever since.
tech crunch event
San Francisco, California
|
October 13-15, 2026
Karsi spokeswoman Elizabeth Diana told TechCrunch that the bill would stifle competition and push users into offshore prediction markets.
“It’s clear this bill is motivated by the interests of casinos, which are threatened by competition. They’re more concerned about protecting their monopoly than they are about protecting consumers,” Diana said.
Polymarket did not respond to a request for comment.
Kalsi has also faced other legal troubles recently, with the app temporarily banned in Nevada and facing criminal charges in Arizona.
It’s probably no coincidence that Carsi announced on Monday that it would add new pre-emptive screening capabilities to limit the potential for insider trading and manipulation in politics and sports. Risk is not theoretical. Last month, the platform fined and suspended Mr. Kalsi after he suspended a candidate for political office for trading on his race. It was also discovered that the editor of YouTube star MrBeast also placed bets using non-public insider information about MrBeast’s channel.
“Working with our partners at IC360, we spent months gathering and creating a screening list of both collegiate and professional sports leagues that resulted in high-profile athletes, officials, and employees being blocked from transacting in the relevant markets,” Carsi said in a blog post.
Polymarket also updated its rules on Monday to draw clearer lines on what is and is not allowed on the platform, saying users cannot bet using stolen confidential information, act on illegal tips or bet on events in which they are in a position of influence.
Updated at 6:30 PM ET and includes information about new screening features from both Kalshi and Polymarket.
Source link
