CFTC Files First Amicus Brief in Prediction Market Fight

The CFTC made its most vocal defense of prediction markets to date on Tuesday.

CFTC Chairman Michael Selig released a video statement arguing in favor of the CFTC’s exclusive jurisdiction over sports contracts. Selig also announced that the CFTC had filed an amicus curiae brief, its first friend-of-the-court brief in almost a year of prediction market litigation with state gaming regulators.

I have some big news to announce… pic.twitter.com/3OBNTaOnIL

— Mike Selig (@ChairmanSelig) February 17, 2026

During his confirmation hearing, Selig claimed he would defer to the courts on the issue of sports contracts. Now the agency he chairs is openly weighing in. Senate Democrats had already taken issue with Selig’s open support for all event contracts before Selig’s latest announcement.

Senate’s opposition to CFTC event contract policies

Twenty-three Senate Democrats sent a letter to Selig on Feb. 13. The letter urged him to stay out of prediction market litigation to allow the courts to resolve sports contract cases without the CFTC weighing in.

It’s not the first letter to the CFTC from the Senate. A bipartisan group of six senators urged Acting Chair Caroline Pham to prohibit sports contracts in September 2025, revealing the bipartisan unease about event contracts that double as entertainment.

Selig’s recent statement supporting all event contracts on prediction market platforms has rattled some Republican leaders.

Non-partisan split in prediction market opinion

Shortly after Selig’s announcement, Utah Governor Spencer Cox posted that sports contracts “are destroying the lives of families and countless Americans, especially young men.” Cox also pledged to “use every resource within my disposal as governor of the sovereign state of Utah…to beat you in court.”

He is among a series of lawmakers who have raised concerns about prediction markets primarily used for entertainment instead of hedging. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called the rise of prediction markets “bad,” one of several Democratic lawmakers who have raised concerns about these products.

But other Democrats have been comfortable embracing prediction markets. Eric Swalwell has posted his Kalshi odds as the favorite in the California gubernatorial race. Progressive Congressman Ritchie Torres praised prediction markets’ accuracy in the wake of the 2024 election. He also introduced a bill prohibiting insider trading on prediction markets in January 2026.

I didn’t pay for a Super Bowl ad, but boy are people betting on my campaign tonight. @Kalshi

My bet is on Californians. pic.twitter.com/HDGhIpFvLX

— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) February 9, 2026

While concerns about prediction markets remain, they haven’t become a clean-cut partisan issue. That leaves room for lawmakers to come together to address the excesses of prediction markets in a future administration.