TLDR Kalshi says the CFTC has not contacted it about unusual trading in its Ether perpetual futures market. The Wall Street Journal reported more than $5 billion in trades of about $5,500 each over the past month. The pattern has led to allegations of wash trading, which Kalshi denies. The Journal said Kalshi offered some traders equity, fee waivers, and cash payments tied to trading activity. Kalshi says the trades come from market maker programs and involve hundreds of distinct traders.
Prediction markets operator Kalshi said it has not been contacted by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over a burst of trading in its Ether perpetual futures market.
The company also said it does not believe any formal examination is underway. The comments followed a news report that the regulator was reviewing the activity.
On Tuesday, The Wall Street Journal reported that the CFTC was looking at a pattern of rapid trades clustered around $5,500 each. The report cited a person familiar with the matter.
According to the Journal, trades of roughly that size made up more than $5 billion in Ether perpetual futures volume over the past month. The pattern has led to allegations of wash trading.
Kalshi Calls Claims “Rumors Seeded by Competitors”
Elisabeth Diana, head of communications at Kalshi, dismissed the reports as “rumors seeded by competitors.”
“We have not been contacted by the CFTC and don’t believe there is any formal examination,” Diana told Cointelegraph. She added that the data patterns are typical of liquidity incentive programs and common in financial markets.
“Don’t believe everything you read on X,” she said.
Perpetual futures let users bet on the price of an asset without buying it. In this case, the asset is Ether.
Kalshi launched its perpetual futures markets in May. A week later,