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Kalshi’s Michigan ban on sports contracts extended
A Michigan court has extended the ban on Kalshi’s sports event contracts and has ordered the operator to cease its operations in the state until August 12, 2026, and introduce geofencing measures.
The court order comes after Kalshi was blocked from offering a prediction market in Michigan in late June 2026, with Judge Rosemarie Aquilina ruling that the prediction platform’s sports contracts were classified as illegal sports betting. Additionally, Kalshi was warned that it would receive $120,000 daily fines in case of non-compliance.
In the latest court decision, Judge Aquilina has imposed a stricter measure against the company, stating that Kalshi would be penalized $500,000 for every day that it fails to implement geolocation controls to limit state users from accessing its website.
Judge Aquilina commented:
“You aren’t really talking about commodities, interest rates, things like that, but gambling, which has traditionally been denied by the states. What you’re doing is defining it in a way that works for you, but not for Michigan.”
Kalshi, on the other hand, continues to argue that its contracts are federal commodities and that the CFTC has exclusive authority to regulate prediction markets. The operator’s position is that federal supervision preempts state restrictions.
Other state authorities, including Assistant Attorney General Lauren Fitzsimons, welcomed the court’s decision, further stating that Kalshi was purposefully delaying its blocking efforts because of financial reasons connected to the ongoing World Cup.
Fitzsimons shared:
“Kalshi is incentivized to drag this out and avoid geofencing for as long as possible, because it is financially beneficial to do so.”
According to the current ruling, Kalshi has to introduce the required measures by the set deadline, with August 13 being the first day of enforcement.
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