CFTC probes mention markets as Kalshi pulls sports bets

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is reviewing prediction market “mention markets” over concerns that contracts tied to specific spoken words may be unusually easy to manipulate, NPR reported late Aug. 13, citing two people with direct knowledge of the inquiry. Summary CFTC is reviewing mention markets over manipulation risks, according to two people familiar with probe. Kalshi removed sports mention markets until further notice while keeping political and earnings markets live. CFTC rules require designated contract markets to list only contracts not readily susceptible to manipulation. Kalshi previously flagged Trump teleprompter operator Gabriel Perez after suspicious mention-market trades produced over $90,000. The CFTC has not announced the inquiry, and both the agency and Kalshi declined comment. Kalshi has responded by removing sports mention markets “until further notice,” according to the report. The inquiry has not been publicly confirmed by the CFTC. Both the regulator and Kalshi declined to comment to NPR, and the CFTC had not published an enforcement action or announcement describing the review as of publication. NEW: The CFTC has launched a probe into predictio...