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Kalshi Scores Victory In Lawsuit Against Nevada

Federal Judge Issues Temporary Restraining Order, Allowing Sports Prediction Markets To Continue

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Are sports prediction markets legal? That question has pitted several states against Kalshi, and it appears the financial exchange and prediction market have at least won the first round.

After suing Nevada and New Jersey, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against Nevada, allowing Kalshi to continue offering its sports prediction markets in the state. The judge also denied a similar action that the Nevada Gaming Commission sought against the company.

The financial exchange and prediction market operator has argued that its menu of sports markets isn’t the same as sports betting and that the company “operates under the comprehensive oversight of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.”

The company won a lawsuit against the federal government in 2024, which allows the platform to continue offering prediction markets on elections and other political events. That expanded, beginning with March Madness and a partnership with the Robinhood investing app. Company officials were pleased with how the judge ruled in the Nevada case.

“Today, the federal court in Nevada granted Kalshi’s preliminary injunction and blocked the state from trying to prevent Kalshi from offering prediction markets,” a Kalshi spokesperson told Front Office Sports. “We are grateful for the court’s careful attention to this matter and recognition of Kalshi’s status as a CFTC-regulated exchange. On to the next step.”

Kalshi seems to be gearing up for legal battles to continue offering sports markets. It recently hired a former official with the American Gaming Association as head of corporate development. Sara Slane, former senior vice president of public affairs at the AGA, will now be in charge of Kalshi’s public affairs and will oversee government relations and communication with sports leagues.

Montana, Illinois, Maryland, and Ohio have also issued cease-and-desist letters to Kalshi, and Michigan is also investigating the company.

Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour has been adamant that the company’s offerings are legal.

“We’re not necessarily very concerned [because] we are regulated at the federal level,” he said recently at an event for venture capitalists in San Francisco. “The state law doesn’t really apply … We have a license. It’s by the CFTC.