‘Absolutely Not Enough’: AOC Slams Prediction Markets’ Latest Move to Curb Insider Trading
AP Photo/Marijan Murat
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) slammed prediction markets’ latest move to curb insider training as “absolutely not enough” amid mounting criticism of these platforms within Congress.
On Monday, Senators John Curtis (R-UT) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced legislation dubbed the “Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act.” If passed, it would ban prediction markets from creating “sports and casino-style event contracts”—a massive hit on prediction markets’ future business, given that a large chunk of their growth has come from sports.
In response, two major prediction markets, Kalshi and Polymarket, announced new guardrails on Monday to ban insider trading.
“We’re launching new technological guardrails that preemptively block politicians, athletes, and other relevant people from trading in certain politics and sports markets,” Bobby DeNault, Head of Enforcement and Legal Counsel at Kalshi, wrote in a blog post published to the company’s site. “These efforts, which have been in the works for months, proactively address the CFTC’s guidance and Congressional bill proposals to prevent insider trading.”
Polymarket announced a broader ban on “trading on stolen confidential information,” “trading on illegal tips” and “trading by those who can influence the outcome.
Ocasio-Cortez took to X, sharing her thoughts on an article announcing Kalshi’s new guardrails.
“This is absolutely not enough,” she wrote. “Just on the policy piece alone, there are SO many individuals—staff, advisors, consultants, cabinet secretaries, spouses, and more—that can trade on insider information. This is just a fig leaf to deflect from criticism. We need to do more.”
Although both prediction markets have come under fire in recent months, Polymarket was the subject of heavy criticism on Monday.
Bets on the US-Iran ceasefire appeared to suggest insider trading, according to an article by The Guardian, which reported that eight Polymarket accounts, created while President Donald Trump was still making comments doubling down on the war with Iran, bet approximately $70,000 in total on a ceasefire being reached by March 31. The accounts stand to gain approximately $820,000.
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