Kalshi rolls out mandatory employer disclosures to curb insider trading

Kalshi has introduced mandatory employer disclosures for certain traders and expanded its market surveillance program after reporting more than 150 investigations, over 100 blocked insider-trading attempts, and 20 law-enforcement referrals during the first quarter of 2026.

According to a company blog post published Tuesday, the prediction market platform has put several new compliance measures into effect immediately following recommendations from its independent Surveillance Audit Committee, which was established in February to oversee market integrity and enforcement efforts.

Among the changes, Kalshi said every proposed market will now receive a risk score before launch. The assessment considers factors such as regulatory compliance, insider-trading exposure, market significance, and national security concerns.

Bobby DeNault, Kalshi’s enforcement and legal counsel, said the company has added national security reviews to help identify markets that could create risks for participants or for the platform itself before they are listed.

For markets considered more vulnerable to insider trading or manipulation, Kalshi now requires participants to disclose their employers before they can trade. The company said the process allows it to identify potential insiders and restrict access before transactions take place.

Additional tools introduced under the program include a whistleblower reporting system that lets users flag suspected market abuse directly to the company.

Prediction markets face mounting scrutiny

Recent enforcement actions have placed prediction markets under growing examination from regulators, lawmakers, and law enforcement agencies.

Earlier this month, NPR reported that the Department of Justice and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission were investigating former U.S. Representative George Santos after Kalshi detected suspicious trading linked to a contract on whether he would attend President Donald Trump’s February State of the Union address. According to NPR, the platform froze Santos’ account and referred the matter to authorities after reviewing the trades.

Separate cases have emerged across the sector. Federal prosecutors charged a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier in April for allegedly using classified information to place profitable trades on Polymarket tied to the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

A month later, authorities accused Google software engineer Michele Spagnuolo of using confidential company information to trade Google-related contracts on Polymarket. Prosecutors alleged the activity generated roughly $1.2 million in profits.

Congress has also examined insider-trading controls within prediction markets. In May, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman James Comer requested information from Kalshi and Polymarket regarding their monitoring systems and enforcement procedures.

Compliance push comes as business expands

Recent compliance initiatives arrive during a period of rapid growth for Kalshi.

Just one day before the latest announcement, the Better Business Bureau’s National Advertising Division said it had referred Kalshi to regulatory authorities after the company declined to participate in a review of influencer advertising disclosures. 

The organization said it was examining whether financial relationships between the platform and online promoters were clearly disclosed and whether advertising practices aligned with Federal Trade Commission guidance.

At the same time, Kalshi has continued expanding its cryptocurrency offerings. The company recently filed with the CFTC to list perpetual futures tied to Hyperliquid’s HYPE token after launching Ethereum perpetual futures under its American Perpetuals product line.