Ninth Circuit upholds Nevada’s authority over Kalshi’s sports contracts as states target age loophole

A three‑judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Kalshi’s effort to block Nevada from applying its gambling regulations to the platform’s sports‑event contracts, reaffirming that the contracts function as gambling rather than federally preempted swaps. The ruling also sent the question of Kalshi’s election‑event contracts back to a lower court. Several states, including Connecticut, Rhode Island, Arizona and New York, have launched legal actions accusing Kalshi of operating an unlicensed sportsbook and exploiting an age loophole that permits users under 21 to trade.

Kalshi maintains that its offerings are regulated derivatives overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and says it will pursue further review. The dispute highlights the broader clash between state gambling authorities and federal regulators over the classification of prediction‑market contracts.