Federal regulators are investigating a White House staff member who allegedly used advance knowledge of presidential speeches to profit on Kalshi, a US-based prediction market platform. According to ABC News, Gabriel Perez, President Donald Trump’s teleprompter operator since 2016, made over $100,000 by betting on what the president would say during public addresses.
Perez is accused of placing wagers on Kalshi’s “mention” markets, which allow users to bet on whether specific topics or phrases will appear in a speaker’s remarks during high-profile events. The bets reportedly covered more than a dozen presidential appearances, including State of the Union addresses, press conferences, and campaign rallies.
The case raises questions about the boundaries of insider trading in prediction markets, a relatively new and lightly regulated corner of financial speculation. Unlike traditional securities markets, where trading on material non-public information is clearly prohibited, the legal framework around event contracts and political betting remains ambiguous.
Kalshi, which operates under oversight from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, has grown rapidly in recent years by offering contracts on everything from election outcomes to Federal Reserve decisions. The platform has positioned itself as a regulated alternative to offshore competitors like Polymarket, though this case could test its enforcement capabilities.
The White House has stated that it takes ethical obligations seriously and is cooperating with investigators. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said there are “very strict ethical guidelines here at the White House” and that the administration expects all staff to follow them.
The investigation was first reported by ABC News and has since been covered by multiple news outlets. The case could have implications for how prediction markets handle access to non-public information, particularly when it involves government employees who may have advance knowledge of policy announcements or public statements.
This article was adapted from Cointelegraph. Read the original here.
