Elizabeth Warren Demands CFTC Records on Prediction Markets, Cites 25% Workforce Cut

On Monday (June 9), Senator Elizabeth Warren questioned whether the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission can effectively regulate prediction markets and cryptocurrencies amid what she described as "unprecedented presidential corruption." In a letter to CFTC Chair Michael Selig, Warren alleged the agency had been "steamrolled" by the industries it oversees and demanded records of staff separations, no-action letters to Polymarket and Gemini, and all communications with prediction market firms by June 18.

Warren tied the CFTC's reduced enforcement to potential conflicts of interest, citing CFTC approval of Polymarket after an investment by Donald Trump Jr.'s firm and fast-tracked approval for a Gemini offshoot. She noted the agency's workforce has shrunk by approximately 25%, with enforcement actions dropping from 58 in fiscal year 2024 to 11 since Trump took office. Prediction markets Kalshi and Polymarket now hold roughly $60 billion in market value, according to reporting cited by Warren.