According to external sources, the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) continued to operate throughout the United States on 11 August, with minimal emergency powers to predict market platforms. Previously, the state of New York had brought $36 billion in civil action against it for illegal gambling. The conflict, which apparently revolved around sports forecasting contracts, essentially touched on the division of competences between federal derivative regulation and state lottery enforcement.

According to the article, the impact of the case was more than that of Kalshi. Once the Court has upheld the priority jurisdiction claim of the CFTC, the event contract platform for the acquisition of a federal licence, the token derivatives platform and, in some cases, the continuing operation of a partially encrypted and permanent contract, it may in future claim interstate operational space.

Kalshi's relationship with the CFTC is shifting.

Kalshi was registered with the CFTC in 2020 and became one of the first federal-held platforms in the United States to focus on the event contract. Initially, its products focused mainly on economic data, weather and policy outcomes, with limited State regulatory attention.

The turn was in 2023. At that time, the CTC had tried to prevent Kalshi from accessing the United States Congress election-related contracts on the grounds that such products were illegal lottery. Kalshi subsequently filed an action, which was upheld by the Federal Court. By early 2025, the CFTC had abandoned its appeal and its regulatory position had changed.

According to the article, during the new Chairman, Mike Selig, CFTC withdrew the draft rules that had previously been proposed to include part of the contract of events in the context of the “roar”. Since then, in January 2025, Kalshi self-certifys the contract for an on-line sports event and rapidly expands.

New York State claims $36 billion.

The Attorney General of the State of New York, Letitia James, and the Governor, Kathy Hochul, filed a lawsuit on 31 July, accusing Kalshi of providing sports forecasting contracts to users in the State without obtaining permission from the New York State Lottery Commission.

The New York State claims at least $36 billion, which includes, inter alia, the return of the user ' s bets, the imposition of a civil fine for each sports contract and the recovery of related profits. The complaint also mentions that Kalshi allowed users aged 18 to take part in the transaction, while the New York State age for mobile sports games was 21.

  • The sports event forecast contract is considered to be under state law. Notes
  • The state of New York invoked the Federal Interstate Telecommunications Act.
  • The state considers that the Merchandise Trading Act does not authorize national sports games.

Before the indictment in New York, several states had taken action against Kalshi. The New York State Lottery Commission issued a restraining order in October 2025 and the Arizona State Prosecution filed criminal charges in March 2026. More than 20 lawsuits and restraining orders have been filed throughout the United States.

Emergency orders point to federal priority.

In the face of a New York State indictment, CFTC issued an emergency order on 11 August requiring Kalshi to continue to operate in accordance with the federal regulatory framework and not to shut down on its own behalf in State litigation. According to CFTC, the sudden closure of a registered designated contract market may affect the balance of the position, price discovery and the continuity of the federal regulatory system.

The article states that CFTC invoked emergency powers under section 8a (9) of the Merchandise Trading Act. This power has been used only six times in history, and last time in 1980, it was used in large commodity market crises. It is now used to prevent gaming law enforcement at the state level, showing that federal agencies have seen the case as a matter of control.

According to the media, the real focus is not just whether Kalshi can continue to operate, but whether the state lottery laws can also bind the event contract platform registered with the CTC. If the federal priority principle is established, Polymarket, the token derivatives platform and the encryption contract business that seeks to develop across states may be directly affected.