The CFTC sued Utah and its attorney general, Derek Brown, on Tuesday in federal court in Utah. It is the agency’s tenth suit against a state over prediction markets, The Block reports.
The trigger was Utah’s own suit against Kalshi. The state called the platform a “public nuisance that is causing substantial ongoing harm” and said it breaks state gambling law, including on bets about sports, elections and politics.
CFTC chair Michael Selig said Congress made the agency the federal regulator with sole responsibility for these markets, and that it will defend its exclusive jurisdiction over commodity derivatives. The report does not list the causes of action in the complaint.
The nine earlier suits named Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Rhode Island, New Mexico and Kentucky. Selig is pursuing rulemaking as well as litigation.
States answer that they hold jurisdiction over sports betting, and that these platforms operate illegally and avoid paying state taxes. The disputes turn on whether event contracts count as derivatives or as bets.
Separately, Reuters reported on Tuesday that the CFTC is investigating whether Polymarket broke a 2022 settlement. Under it, Polymarket agreed to stop offering contracts to US users on its flagship overseas platform.
Utah’s attorney general had not responded to a request for comment, and the report lists no court rulings or any outcome in Utah’s case against Kalshi. The jurisdiction question has moved through state courts and could reach the Supreme Court. Ten suits in, nobody has reported who wins.
