Kalshi Uses State-Targeted Promo Codes to Boost Liquidity in Sports Prediction Markets

Overview

• Kalshi rolled out multiple state-specific referral codes this weekend that offer $10–$15 in trading credit for new users to trade World Cup, UFC and MLB contracts.
• Example codes active in reporting include ALCOM15 ($15), SYRACUSE ($10) and OREGONLIVE1 ($10), and each requires new-user registration, identity and location verification, an initial deposit and qualifying trades before bonus credit is issued.
• The promotions are limited by state exclusions reported across sources — for example Arizona, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, Nevada and Ohio — and some outlets showed different state mappings for specific codes.
• Reporting showed measurable short-term effects on market prices and implied probabilities for marquee events, with bonus-funded accounts concentrating volume and moving order-book prices on England vs Norway, Argentina vs Switzerland and UFC 329 markets.
• Whether the volume persists depends on verification enforcement and whether bonus users convert to funded, long-term traders, and the practice raises questions about transient price distortion, consumer exposure to non-withdrawable credits, and regulatory oversight on state eligibility.