CFTC orders Kalshi to stay open in New York amid state lawsuit and new lobbying push
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission ordered Kalshi to keep offering prediction markets in New York on August 11, even as the state's attorney general sues the platform over alleged illegal gambling. The directive requires Kalshi to maintain market access while the legal fight proceeds. Separately, Kalshi expanded its lobbying team in Albany, hiring additional state-level advocates as the dispute with top New York officials intensifies.
The CFTC's order protects Kalshi's New York revenue temporarily, but it does not resolve the core threat. State gambling lawsuits in New York, Utah, and Wisconsin have already pierced Kalshi's federal preemption defense, making contract validity depend on where each trade originates. Traders face voiding risk if New York wins an injunction, while Kalshi must absorb legal spend on two parallel fronts: defending the state case and lobbying Albany for legislative relief.
The platform's Minnesota win remains its only recent federal victory. Polymarket holds identical CFTC registration and faces identical exposure. The immediate test is whether New York seeks a preliminary injunction that halts trading before the CFTC's order can be challenged. Each new state loss forces Kalshi to geofence another market or absorb voiding risk, shrinking its addressable base while legal costs mount.