Tldr:
- Washington state filed a lawsuit against Calci on Friday, alleging that its prediction market products violate the state’s online gambling laws.
- Nevada obtained a temporary restraining order forcing Calci to halt statewide sports, election and entertainment contracts.
- Coinbase, a Kalshi partner, received a preliminary injunction and 60 days to comply with the Nevada court order.
- Legal experts say the conflict between state and federal jurisdiction over prediction markets could reach the US Supreme Court.
Prediction markets platform Kalshi is facing increasing legal pressure from multiple US states. Washington state I filed a lawsuit against the company on Friday, for allegedly violating state gambling laws.
The filing came just one week after Nevada obtained a temporary restraining order against Calci. Nevada also won a preliminary injunction against Coinbase’s prediction market offerings.
Legal experts now say this dispute may eventually reach the US Supreme Court.
Washington State targets Calci for gambling law violations
The Washington State Attorney General filed the complaint, arguing that Calci ran disguised gambling products.
Depending on the state, Washington maintains a strictly regulated gambling market, including a ban on online gambling. The lawsuit alleges that Kalshi bypasses these regulations through his platform.
This was reported by the Public Prosecutor’s Office Like nothing The application displays the events and probabilities corresponding to consumer payments. Officials argued that this model mirrors how traditional gambling operations operate.
The government press release noted that Calci “announces that it allows consumers to ‘bet on anything’ by simply naming their service”Prediction market“Instead of ‘gambling’.”
The lawsuit also alleged that Calci’s products promoted gambling addiction and specifically targeted college students.
Kalci responded by filing a motion to move the case to federal court. The company said it was already litigating similar cases in other federal courts at the time.
Calci’s head of communications, Elizabeth Diana, addressed the prosecutor’s allegations directly. “IIf Attorney General (Nicholas) Brown had not filed a lawsuit against us before our scheduled meeting with him, he might as well have said we were providing war markets. we don’t do that,She said.
Diana added that the lawsuit itself only mentioned a contract regarding when the former Iranian Supreme Leader would leave office, and not a market for war.
Nevada courts move against both Kalshi and Coinbase
Nevada Legal action against prediction market providers came before Washington filed its request. The appeals court victory allowed the state of Nevada to obtain a temporary restraining order against Calci.
Under the order, Kalci was asked to remove sports, entertainment and election contracts from the state for at least two weeks.
A hearing is scheduled for Friday, April 3, where a state judge will decide whether to extend these restrictions. Trade publication Gambling Insider reported that Kalshi’s Nevada users could still access the platform after the order went into effect. This raised questions about the enforcement of the temporary restraining order.
Nevada also obtained a preliminary injunction against Coinbase, which partners with Kalshi on market forecasting offerings.
District Judge Christine Lewis noted this Coinbase He did not object to offering event-based contracts linked to sporting events and elections. The court gave Coinbase 60 days to make technological changes to comply with the order.
Diana emphasized that Kalshi’s legal status remains stable across jurisdictions. “As other courts have recognized, Calci is a nationally regulated exchange for real-world events, subject to exclusive federal jurisdiction. She said. “We are confident in our legal arguments,” she added.
