727 FinanceOdaily Prediction Marketplace Kalshi wins partial preliminary injunction against Illinois. Judge Martha M., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Oct. 2 Pacold ruled that the state's sports betting licensing system and related criminal provisions may be exempted from enforcement against Kalshi under federal law.
The ruling temporarily blocks Illinois from requiring Kalshi to hold a state license that would have restricted traders to be 21 years of age or older and located in the state, as well as contractually traceable sporting events. At the same time, the court did not rule on the new prediction market fee in Illinois.
Pacold said that contracts about championship winners may be swaps within the meaning of the Commodity Exchange Act and should be traded in designated contract markets and be subject to federal regulation. This judgment is different from the conclusion of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in August that the relevant contract belongs to gambling rather than swaps.
It was Kalshi's first win in federal court since July. The new Illinois budget law provides for a 1.75% fee for the first 5 million related transactions on the exchange, followed by a 3.5% fee, plus a 15% gross revenue fee and a 25 or 50 cent fee per transaction; the court asked the parties to submit additional comments on the fees. (Bitcoin.com News)