Overview
- The CFTC filed a federal complaint in Wisconsin with the Justice Department’s Civil Division, seeking a declaration that federal law controls these markets and a permanent injunction against state enforcement.
- Wisconsin had sued Kalshi, Polymarket, Coinbase, Robinhood, and Crypto.com, arguing their sports outcome contracts function as unlicensed betting under state law.
- The CFTC says these yes‑or‑no event contracts are swaps regulated under the Commodity Exchange Act, which it argues gives the agency exclusive authority over how they are listed and traded.
- The Wisconsin case is the fifth state action the CFTC has challenged this month, following similar suits against New York, Arizona, Connecticut, and Illinois.
- Recent court developments include a Third Circuit ruling that backed the CFTC’s treatment of certain contracts and an Arizona judge pausing a criminal case against Kalshi, signaling potential federal preemption of state gambling laws.