NCAA Asks CFTC to Suspend College Prediction Markets

Overview

• President Charlie Baker sent a letter Wednesday to CFTC Chair Michael Selig requesting a pause on collegiate prediction markets until a robust safeguard framework is established.
• He proposed guardrails that include bans on prop-style contracts, enhanced integrity surveillance with geolocation tracing and cross-operator reporting, age and advertising restrictions, harm-reduction resources, and anti-harassment measures.
• The NCAA said it is willing to work with federal regulators to design protections, and the CFTC has not publicly announced any action on the request.
• Kalshi had notified regulators about self-certifying transfer-portal markets but later said it had no immediate plans to list those contracts following criticism.
• Prediction markets operate under CFTC oversight as financial trading platforms accessible to users 18 and older nationwide, a setup the NCAA contrasts with state-regulated sportsbooks as it also grapples with a rescinded betting rule and recent player ineligibility cases tied to manipulation.