Wisconsin Sues Kalshi, Coinbase, Polymarket, Robinhood and Crypto.com Over Prediction Markets

Wisconsin filed three April 23 lawsuits alleging sports event contracts offered by Kalshi, Robinhood, Coinbase, Polymarket and Crypto.com violate state illegal gambling law in Dane County Court.

24d ago

Fact Check

The claim is well supported by the official Wisconsin DOJ press release, which says DOJ filed Dane County lawsuits against Kalshi, Robinhood, Coinbase, Polymarket, Crypto.com, and affiliates over allegedly illegal event-contract sports betting. CoinDesk adds the key structural detail in the claim: Wisconsin filed three complaints, including one naming Crypto.com and its derivatives arm and another naming Polymarket, which matches the statement that Wisconsin expanded its challenge with fresh Dane County complaints. Crypto.news independently corroborates the broader set of defendants and the theory that the state views these contracts as illegal bets rather than lawful derivatives. The only minor uncertainty is exact phrasing such as 'expanded its legal challenge' and the precise filing date wording across reports, but the substance of the claim is supported.

Summary

Wisconsin filed three lawsuits on April 23 against Kalshi, Robinhood, Coinbase, Polymarket and Crypto.com, alleging that sports event contracts tied to NCAA basketball and professional sports outcomes violate Wisconsin illegal gambling law. The suits were filed in Dane County Court and focus on whether the platforms’ sports-related event contracts function as unlawful betting products under state law. The new filing adds procedural detail to Wisconsin’s challenge by specifying that the state brought three separate cases centered on contracts linked to college and professional sports results.

Terms & Concepts

Prediction market: A marketplace where traders buy and sell contracts tied to future events, with prices often interpreted as reflecting expected probabilities.
Event contracts: Contracts that pay out based on the outcome of a specified event; regulators and states may dispute whether some should be treated as derivatives or gambling products.
NCAA: The National Collegiate Athletic Association, the main governing body for U.S. college sports, including men’s and women’s basketball tournaments.