President Donald Trump publicly defended the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) exclusive authority over prediction markets, framing the regulatory turf war as central to keeping the United States ahead of foreign competitors in finance and crypto.
On May 26, Trump warned that rival countries want to displace the US as the global Bitcoin (BTC) capital. He added that prediction markets, a fast-growing asset class still being defined, face the same competition.
The CFTC’s Prediction Markets Push
Trump’s post praised CFTC Chairman Mike Selig directly, thanking him for steering the agency’s expanding authority over event contracts. Not to mention, Selig is the sole sitting commissioner of the typically five-seat CFTC.
The framing places prediction markets alongside Bitcoin as industries where regulatory clarity could decide whether the US keeps its lead. Kalshi was valued at $22 billion in a May 2026 funding round, signaling fast institutional adoption.
Monthly prediction market trading volumes have surpassed $20 billion, up from roughly $1.2 billion in early 2025. Yet, prediction markets’ legal status remains unresolved across several states.
The post named Chris Christie, Letitia James, Tim Walz, and JB Pritzker as “SCUM,” driving the federal-state regulatory battle.
James joined 38 state attorneys general in April, backing Massachusetts in its lawsuit against Kalshi. The CFTC has filed cases against Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, and Wisconsin. The agency wants to block state gambling laws from reaching federally regulated venues.
Legal observers expect the dispute to reach the Supreme Court. Until then, the industry sits in regulatory limbo.
