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Comment by ranger207 | Hacker News Reader

I'm curious to see how this works out, because sports betting is _not_ in the CFTC's remit, and Kalshi etc's argument that states can't regulate them because they're not technically sports betting is contrary to the spirit of the law

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> because sports betting is _not_ in the CFTC's remit

Traditionally it has not been, but the current CFTC says that 'prediction bets on sports' ARE under their purview. This has not been fully challenged in court, though.

If Congress intended for the CFTC to regulate sports betting, it would have had that language in the act that originated the agency. It's telling that only recently the CFTC has discovered such authority. No previous leadership of the CFTC read the act to mean what the current leadership thinks it means.

This is 2026. We don’t need your stinking laws.

What if CFTC would start to claim they are allowed to regulate online casinos or online poker? I feel that would be about as non-sensical.

There’s no “house” or “book” aspect to Kalshi. They are nothing more than contracts that are bought and sold between individuals.

How do they make money?

Just like other exchanges.

They charge trading fees.

What about the special partners that put up bets that are basically just methods to launder the fact that there's a house?

They also place their own bets within their own market. They don't just make money on trading fees.

Kalshi does not trade against its users.

That's their PR department talking.

https://straighttothepoint.substack.com/p/you-cant-have-it-b...

https://www.sportico.com/business/sports-betting/2025/kalshi...

Kalshi definitely does this

They just don't make any money off it.

A different entity provides liquidity.

There’s no house like in sportsbooks.

And there is no house in pool betting, poker or backgammon either. We still count all of them including betting exchanges (what has now been rebranded as prediction markets) are still normally regulated as gambling.

Not in the US.

Is there any state that allows organized poker tournaments, but not gambling or sports betting?

Sounds like a glaringly obvious conflict of interest?

Of course it is, people will do whatever they can get away with.

Be careful, the market makers always win. If you go against them, you make yourself a target.

Lots of types of contracts bought and sold between individuals are prohibited by law.

They problem is the federal government considers these particular contracts are generally legal, and the states have no authority.

Have you heard of Betfair? A UK company which has done "prediction markets" since 2000. In the Europe it is called a betting exchange and regulated like sports betting. And betting pools is another form of betting which is way older than that and there are no house in them either.

And by your argument poker or backgammon would not be gambling either.

>And by your argument poker or backgammon would not be gambling either.

They aren't. A sportsbook explicitly sets lines and you are betting that the line they set is incorrect.

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