Kalshi Asks Trump Administration to Let It Become Even More Dangerous
The betting site wants to let people use borrowed money.
Kalshi, one of the largest U.S. prediction markets, is asking the Trump administration to help it attract more big bettors.
In a filing with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Tuesday, the company’s internal clearing house Kalshi Klear sought approval to offer margin trading on event contracts, CNBC reported.
If Kalshi is permitted to offer margin trading, then traders will be able to borrow funds from the company itself in order to gain or lose more than they invest—potentially exposing investors to a dangerous level of financial risk.
The addition of margin trading is viewed as crucial for attracting bigger institutions that already use the practice on traditional stocks and futures.
While sportsbooks derive their profit from losing bets by their customers, Kalshi gets its revenue from transaction fees for each wager placed. Bigger bettors means bigger bets, and more money for the house.
State gaming commissions have always limited credit given to bettors on sporting events contracts, but prediction market companies have argued that their spo...