Kalshi is now under a two-week restraining order banning betting in Nevada as a legal debate continues over the long-term status of prediction markets there.
Nevada’s First Judicial District Court on Friday issued a 14-day order, ordering the platform to stop offering event contracts in that state. A federal appeals court on Thursday cleared the way for state regulators to seek the order, which the Nevada Gaming Control Board first sought in 2025 when it told Kalshi to cease his sports contracts.
Kalshi had argued that the case should be moved to federal court, but the appeals court returned it to Nevada, despite the company’s claim that it “faces imminent harm” from the state’s actions.
The state court on Friday suspended Kalshi’s sports, entertainment and election betting as the parties continue to argue over the relative authority of state regulators to govern event contracting businesses.
The Nevada judge determined that the gaming board cannot function properly under these circumstances, and “an unlicensed participant beyond the Board’s control, such as Kalshi, obstructs the Board’s ability to carry out its statutory duties.” The court will follow up with a hearing on April 3.
A spokesman for Kalshi declined to comment on the Nevada development. Kalshi is being sued or prosecuted in several states for similar reasons. Earlier this week, Arizona’s attorney general charged Kalshi with running an unlicensed gambling business and offering illegal election betting.
Meanwhile, Chairman Mike Selig of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission insists that his federal agency actually has proper authority over markets, not states. He filed a brief with the court making that argument and has repeated it in several recent public appearances, vowing to fight the states on that point. It has also begun to make progress in setting CFTC policies on prediction markets.
Federal regulation generally supersedes state regulation, but courts may need to evaluate who is entitled to jurisdiction. Major League Baseball, for example, has joined the CFTC, signing a memorandum of understanding this week on oversight of prediction markets and also signing a partnership with Polymarket.
Read more: CFTC’s Selig opens legal dispute against states that interfere with prediction markets
