- Kalshi announced its entry into sports betting, allowing users to place bets in all 50 states, with the Super Bowl just two weeks away. The move came days after naming Donald Trump Jr. As an advisor.
The prediction market Kalshi, which became famous for letting people make bets on the U.S. Presidential election, is expanding into sports.
The move comes in time for the NFL playoffs and the Super Bowl—a bonanza of sports gambling that is scheduled for Feb. 9.
Founded in 2018 by Tarek Mansour and Launa Lopes Lara, Kalshi already allows users to bet on a range of events, from politics to the Oscars and what Bitcoin will do next.
“Today, on the heels of our explosive growth, Kalshi takes its next big step: Sports,” Mansour posted to X on Thursday.
Kalshi didn’t immediately respond to Coins2Day’s request for additional comment.
While sports betting operators like FanDuel and Draftkings are only allowed to operate in states where traditional sports betting has been legalized, Kalshi takes a different approach in terms of how it generates revenue.
Rather than collecting the money generated from lost bets, Kalshi takes a cut of placed bets. The company allows users to trade directly with others on its platform, permitting its use to be placed in all 50 states.
On Wednesday, Kalshi filed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, notifying the regulator of its betting contracts on American sports championship winners. It offers bets in football, basketball, and hockey, as well as a bet on who will be the New Orleans Saints’ next head coach.
Prior to Donald Trump’s inauguration as president, digital-currency exchange Crypto.com submitted a similar filing to tap into sports betting. The regulator’s outgoing chair asked Crypto.com to take down its sports bets, but the company refused.
Kalshi’s announcement on sports betting comes over a week after the company made public that Donald Trump Jr. Will be joining Kalshi as an advisor.
“Don has always been at the forefront of these types of spaces and new technologies,” Mansour told CNBC on Squawk Box. “He’s always been in tune with what the American people feel and want.”
When asked about the perception of doing business with the president’s son and if there was a Democratic advisor, Mansour said Kalshi is “not a political company in any way, shape, or form.”