Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Michael Selig spoke out in support of prediction markets in the Wall Street Journal.The commentary was published on...
IGA hosts dialogue against CFTC-approved prediction markets
During the 29th Annual Western Indian Gaming Conference, the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) announced that it plans to work with tribes, state officials, Congress, and the American Gaming Association (AGA) to challenge CFTC-approved prediction markets.
The conference was hosted at Pechanga Resort Casino by the California Nations Indian Gaming Association and focused on concerns that the CFTC allows prediction markets to operate outside of the tribal, state, and federal gaming law framework. The chairman of the IGA, David Z. Bean, shared that tribal governments are planning coordinated legal and regulatory action.
Bean stated:
“Illegal prediction markets are exactly what they sound like: illegal, unregulated online sports betting that operates outside federal and state law. Actions by the CFTC under this administration are enabling an unlawful end-run around tribal governments, state regulators, and Congress itself. This is not innovation. This is illegal gambling, and it represents a direct attack on tribal sovereignty and the rule of law.”
Victor Rocha, conference chairman for the Indian Gaming Association, added:
“The CFTC is being used as a vehicle to authorize nationwide gambling without tribal consent, without state authorization, and without congressional approval. This is federal overreach at its most dangerous. Tribal gaming exists because of negotiated agreements, federal law, and voter approval. Prediction markets attempt to erase that structure through unilateral federal action. Indian Country will not accept that.”
The IGA said that it wants to see the enforcement of existing law and federal accountability and will continue to lead national efforts focused on tribal sovereignty and the regulatory structure of tribal gaming.
On January 29, 2026, CFTC Chairman Michael Selig revealed that the commission will draft new rules for the prediction markets industry.Earlier proposals to restrict...
