NC Gov. Stein bans state workers from prediction market insider trading
North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein issued an executive order on Wednesday, May 27, 2026, banning state employees from using nonpublic information to trade on prediction markets. The directive targets insider-information-based wagering on event contracts covering sports, elections, government actions, and military operations. Kalshi and Polymarket were cited as examples of covered platforms, particularly due to their offering of North Carolina-specific contracts. The move was announced the same day a Pew study reported the two platforms grew 380% over eight months. Stein appeared at Wake Tech's Hendrick Center for Automotive Excellence alongside U.S. Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Ralph J. Rizzo Jr. No specific enforcement mechanism or penalty structure was detailed in available reports.
Kalshi and Polymarket must now monitor a new state-level employee-trading restriction while already defending geofencing orders and felony bans in Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, and Rhode Island. The order signals that insider-trading framing is becoming a parallel state attack vector beyond direct contract-classification suits.