TLDR All 11 Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee asked Chair Tim Scott to hold a public hearing on prediction markets. The request followed a private meeting between Republican committee members and Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour on Sept. 23. Kalshi and Polymarket recorded about $53 billion in combined trading volume in July, according to Pew Research Center. A group of state lawmakers filed a brief urging the Supreme Court to hear New Jersey’s case against Kalshi. Kalshi has until Nov. 9 to respond to New Jersey’s Supreme Court petition.
All 11 Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee have asked Chair Tim Scott to hold a public hearing on prediction markets. The request came in a letter dated Sept. 23.
Ranking member Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto led the effort. It followed reports that Republican members planned a private meeting with prediction market executives, including representatives of Kalshi.
According to The Block, Republican committee members met Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour on Sept. 23. Scott said the talk covered securities-linked products, how investors use them, retail protections and regulatory questions for Congress.
Why Democrats Want a Public Hearing
The senators said a public session would let every committee member question industry participants. They want to examine consumer exposure, market integrity and the products being offered.
Their letter focused in part on contracts tied to company performance. The Democrats said these could qualify as security-based swaps, which would place them under Securities and Exchange Commission rules.
“The full Senate Banking Committee has a critical oversight role to play,” the lawmakers wrote. The letter presents SEC oversight as a question to examine, not a finding that covers every contract.
Kalshi has also filed rules with the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for stock and ETF perpetual futures.