Key Notes
- Kalshi took its lobbying effort with the US government a step further by setting up an office in Washington.
- John Bivona will be the company’s first head of federal government relations.
- Kalshi is still facing legal hurdles in some US states.
Top prediction markets platform Kalshi has expanded its presence by setting up a new office in Washington, D.C. The move is targeted at strengthening its policy efforts with the United States. Precisely, this move is aimed at boosting Kalshi’s strategic lobbying effort with the US government.
Kalshi Recognizes Prediction Markets Volume Surge
In a press release, Kalshi admitted that it has hired John Bivona to be the company’s first Head of Federal Government Relations. He will be working from the new office.
Bivona is a political strategist who boasts of more than 20 years of experience. During Biden’s administration, he had previously worked as the first White House liaison at the Department of Homeland Security.
Blake Bee, a former Senior Manager of State and Local Public Policy at Amazon, was also brought in to lead Kalshi’s state policy efforts. While at Amazon, Bee engaged with state attorneys general. This comes some weeks after CNN chose Kalshi as its official prediction markets partner.
The recent expansion move reflects a recognition of the surging volume in the broader prediction territory. For context, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission-regulated platform is ranked the world’s largest prediction market. As of December, it recorded a monthly volume of $6.58 billion. Meanwhile, Polymarket reported only $2.28 billion, although it reported $3 billion in volume and 338,000 unique traders in October.
Kalshi was not left out, as it also secured a notable percentage of the prediction market growth. In the first four days following the US National Football League kickoff last year, it recorded about $441 million in volume.
Kalshi Remains Neck-deep in Legal Chaos
Meanwhile, Kalshi’s success is not without some legal hurdles in several jurisdictions. It has even encountered state-level pushback on its sports event contracts. US states like Arizona, Tennessee, Connecticut, and Massachusetts have taken enforcement actions against the prediction market platform.
Last November, Kalshi was accused of illegal sports gambling and market manipulation. The class action suit claimed that it paraded itself as a “legal sports betting” even though it does not possess any gaming license in any US state. As a result, states like Tennessee have placed a ban on Kalshi.
However, Kalshi’s response to the cease-and-desist letter sent by the Tennessee Sports Wagering Council was to sue the state.
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Benjamin Godfrey is a blockchain enthusiast and journalist who relishes writing about the real life applications of blockchain technology and innovations to drive general acceptance and worldwide integration of the emerging technology. His desire to educate people about cryptocurrencies inspires his contributions to renowned blockchain media and sites.
