A White House official told Semafor that prediction markets like Kalshi, initially expected to attend the kick-off event for the CFTC Innovation Advisory Committee’s inaugural meeting, would not be included after all. Another person familiar with the event said that organizers had wound up deciding to focus it solely on crypto.
The call comes weeks after the White House suspended its teleprompter operator over allegations he’d used Kalshi to bet on Trump’s speeches.
“Bad optics to have the prediction markets sitting in the room in the aftermath of the teleprompter problem,” a person familiar with the event said, adding that it “would be a big distraction from larger tech and crypto agenda.”
CFTC Chair Mike Selig, SEC Chair Paul Atkins, and top crypto adviser Patrick Witt are expected to join representatives from firms like Coinbase, Kraken, Ripple, Chainlink, Andreessen Horowitz, Paradigm, Nasdaq, and Intercontinental Exchange at the meeting, the people said. Other anticipated attendees include trade associations like the Digital Chamber, the Crypto Council for Innovation, and the Blockchain Association.
One IAC member not on the list: CME Group, which is suing the CFTC.
