Former SEC Chair Gensler Opposes CFTC's Jurisdiction Over Sports Prediction Markets

According to Odaily, former SEC and CFTC Chair Gary Gensler filed a friend-of-the-court brief this week opposing the CFTC's claim that the Dodd-Frank Act grants it authority to regulate sports betting. Gensler argued that if Dodd-Frank truly excluded state regulation of sports wagering, this would have been major news when the law was enacted, but no one interpreted it that way at the time. He served as CFTC Chair from 2009 to 2014 and oversaw implementation of Dodd-Frank rules.

The brief relates to Kalshi, a prediction market platform, in its dispute with Ohio. The CFTC has supported Kalshi against state regulators and proposed broader prediction market rules this week, though it seeks stricter limits on betting tied to terrorist attacks, assassinations, and wars.