Kalshi Reports 150+ Insider-Trading Investigations in Q1, Rolls Out Employer Checks for High-Risk Markets

Kalshi opened more than 150 insider-trading investigations in the first quarter of 2026, blocked over 100 potential insider trades using automated screening tools, and referred at least 20 cases to law enforcement. The CFTC-regulated prediction market paired the numbers Tuesday with three new compliance tools effective immediately.

The figures come from a June 9 post on Kalshi's news site by Head of Enforcement Robert DeNault. Kalshi also reported five formal disciplinary actions taken in Q1. The new measures include a risk-scoring framework applied to every proposed market before listing, an employment-verification requirement for traders on high-risk markets, and expanded whistleblower tools on every market page.

The Enforcement Picture

Kalshi's Q1 statistics mark a step up from the pace disclosed earlier this year. A February enforcement post noted 200 investigations opened over the prior twelve months, with a dozen-plus reaching active-case status. By the end of Q1, pre-trade screening tools alone had blocked more than 100 trades before execution.

The public disciplinary record now spans several categories of insider abuse. In February, Kalshi described two closed cases: a California governor candidate who traded about $200 on his own race (5-year ban, financial penalty equal to 10 times the initial trade), and a YouTube show editor who traded about $4,000 on streaming-platform markets where he had access to non-public scheduling information (2-year suspension, 5 times the trade in penalty). In April, three more political insider-trading cases surfaced involving congressional primary candidates in Minnesota, Texas, and Virginia who had bet on their own elections.

The highest-profile case to date sits outside the formal enforcement count. Federal authorities, including the CFTC and DOJ, are investigating former Congressman George Santos for allegedly using advance knowledge of his own absence from Trump's State of the Union address to profit on a Kalshi contract, according to NPR and CNN. Kalshi froze Santos' account and made a law-enforcement referral. Santos' profits were reported in the tens of thousands of dollars.

New Tools: Risk Scoring and Employment Verification

Tuesday's measures follow recommendations from Kalshi's independent Surveillance Audit Committee, which was established in February. The committee's first quarterly report drove the three rollouts.

The risk-scoring framework evaluates each proposed market across six dimensions before listing: corporate event or MNPI exposure, outcome concentration (how many people can influence the result), market importance, regulatory compatibility, non-traditional insider risk, and national security risk. Markets scoring high on the national security dimension may be rejected for listing outright, Kalshi said.

For markets that clear listing review but still carry elevated insider risk, traders must now complete an online employment disclosure before placing bets. Kalshi said it will not query the form unless suspicious activity triggers a review, but traders matching the profile of presumptive insiders will be screened out before a trade clears. Markets tied to corporate KPIs, foreign policy, and geopolitical flashpoints were cited as examples subject to the requirement.

The whistleblower expansion adds a direct reporting line to Kalshi's surveillance team on every market page. The team monitors the public order book around the clock.

Prediction-Market Integrity Crackdown

Kalshi's crackdown runs parallel to several other active prediction-market integrity threads. The CFTC is preparing a new rule that would permit most sports-event contracts while preserving its authority to block manipulation-prone markets, the WSJ reported earlier this month. A House Oversight probe into both Kalshi and Polymarket, opened by Rep. James Comer, is also underway.

The enforcement posture also predates a parallel case at Polymarket. A US Army soldier was charged in April with using classified information about US military operations in Venezuela to generate about $400,000 in profits on Polymarket, the first criminal prediction-market insider-trading case to reach indictment. That trial is scheduled for December.

Kalshi's surveillance infrastructure draws directly from traditional exchange precedent. The company pointed to CME Group's public discipline notices as the model for its own regulatory/notices page. Its surveillance partners include Solidus Labs and the Wharton Forensic Analytics Lab. Former Treasury official Brian Nelson is advising on market integrity and financial compliance.

"By implementing these new integrity measures, we continue to lead the industry on the issue of market integrity amongst federally regulated prediction markets," DeNault said in the Tuesday statement.