Utah files 14 charges against Kalshi for online gambling
6.6 Regulation Utah charged Kalshi and its co-founders with 14 counts for allegedly promoting illegal online gambling, escalating a legal clash over state versus federal oversight.
Utah has filed 14 criminal charges against prediction market operator Kalshi and its co-founders, Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara, alleging they promoted illegal online gambling. The charges include 13 felonies and one misdemeanor, following a sting operation where an undercover agent placed 12 sports bets on Kalshi’s platform using a Utah address and debit card. Each wager led to a felony charge for promoting online gambling, with additional counts for a pattern of unlawful activity and general gambling promotion. Utah’s attorney general stressed that gambling is illegal in the state, regardless of how it is labeled or federally registered. This legal action comes after a federal court refused to exempt Kalshi from Utah’s gambling laws, highlighting an ongoing dispute between state authorities and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which contends that federal law should govern such markets. Kalshi has called the charges an overreach and accused Utah of political motives. The state is also seeking up to $61.2 million in allegedly unlawful fees through a civil lawsuit.
