U.S. CFTC chief: Election betting contracts add to regulatory burden

Rostin Behnam, Chair of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), described the agency as being at an "inflection point" following a court ruling that legalized betting on election outcomes via derivatives contracts. Speaking on Bloomberg Television, Behnam mentioned that while the CFTC is set to regulate these contracts, it is appealing the decision, arguing that such oversight is beyond its jurisdiction. He underscored the regulatory challenges posed by the growing market for these contracts, especially as the CFTC is already overextended in regulating assets like crypto. This comes after a U.S. federal appeals court upheld the legality of allowing the New York-based trading platform Kalshi to list contracts for betting on election outcomes.