Nevada Becomes First State to Ban Prediction Market Kalshi—At Least for Now

After months of legal back-and-forth, Nevada successfully banned Kalshi on Friday, forcing the prediction market platform to refrain from offering event contracts related to sports, politics and entertainment in the state for the next fourteen days.

The temporary restraining order, or TRO, will last until April 3, when a hearing will take place on Nevada’s motion for a preliminary injunction in the case against Kalshi. A preliminary injunction could potentially extend Kalshi’s temporary ban for several more months as the case moves through the trial process.

The Nevada state judge who granted the restraining order Friday noted that the Nevada Gaming Control Board is “reasonably likely to prevail on the merits” of its case against the prediction market platform.

Daniel Wallach, a lawyer specializing in sports betting, said Declutter The only other hurdle now standing in the way of a longer-term Kalshi ban in Nevada is a federal hearing in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 16, which could potentially resolve state court enforcement proceedings.

Kalshi has been aggressively pushing for weeks to prevent Nevada from banning the platform — even temporarily. That campaign suffered a major blow yesterday, however, when the Ninth Circuit declined to prevent Nevada from issuing an initial, temporary restraining order.

“Kalshi has repeatedly stated that his activities are legal in 50 states, which is clearly not true,” Mike Dreitzer, chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, said in a statement. “Prediction markets, to the extent they facilitate unlicensed gambling, are illegal in Nevada, and we have a legal obligation to protect the public.

“We want people in the state to be able to gamble safely on a licensed book,” he continued.

Kalshi, which is now valued at $22 billion following a recent $1 billion funding round, declined to comment when reached by Declutter.

Nevada is the first state in the country to ban kalshi. Others are close behind. For example, Kalshi is currently appealing for a potentially similar temporary measure prohibit of the Massachusetts platform.

Over the past year, numerous states have taken Kalshi and other prediction marketplaces, including Polymarket’s platform and Crypto.com, to court, arguing that the companies offer unlicensed sports betting that should be regulated at the state level. The prediction market companies have disputed that this is the case not offering sports betting, but essentially sports-related event contracts, which are regulated at the federal level by the CFTC.

The Trump CFTC has eagerly supported this interpretation, arguing that states should not regulate prediction market platforms. Earlier this week, when the Arizona attorney general filed criminal prosecution Against Kalshi for allegedly operating an illegal gambling service and allowing election betting without a license, CFTC Chairman Mike Selig immediately condemned the move.

“This is a jurisdictional dispute and completely inappropriate as a criminal prosecution,” Selig said said. “The CFTC is monitoring this closely and evaluating options.”

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that Kalshi declined comment.