Ending Insider Trading in Prediction Markets

The recent rise of prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket are changing the betting landscape in America. For the first time ever, people have a place to wager on everything from the weather in Chicago to the winner of an election in Kalamazoo. 

It doesn’t take an advanced degree to see how these platforms are also a breeding ground for potential manipulation and corruption. In the last few weeks alone, we’ve seen numerous examples of politicians and government officials manipulating the system:

• NBC News: Three political candidates were recently suspended from one betting platform for betting on their own races.
• Reuters: A soldier was recently charged for allegedly using classified information to profit more than $400,000 off the military operation to capture Maduro. 

This behavior is wrong and entirely unethical. The American people deserve representatives who will serve their best interests, which is why I’ve established a policy in my office banning every member of my staff from placing bets on prediction markets involving government action, political activity, or any knowledge they may have learned through their employment.

But I’m not stopping there. I also co-sponsored the PREDICT Act (H.R. 8076) to get ahead of this rapidly developing problem by banning high-ranking government officials — who are in the perfect position to influence outcomes — from betting on these under-regulated platforms and profiting off insider information. Specifically, the bill would apply to members of Congress, the president and vice president, cabinet officials, judges, and other senior federal employees.

This bipartisan bill is a common-sense way to hold politicians in Washington to the same standard I hold my office to and begin the difficult process of rebuilding trust in government. It’s the newest addition to the second pillar of my Blueprint for a Better America: Restoring Trust in Government, which you can learn more about at barrett.house.gov/reform.