Robinhood Scale Downs Contractual Agreement with Kalshi for Collaborative Ventures
Title: Kalshi Keeps the Super Bowl LIX Event Contracts Rolling Despite Regulatory HurdlesAuthor: Daniel Craymer May 2, 2025
It's been another eventful week in the US iGaming industry with Mississippi lawmakers cracking down on sweepstakes operators. The spotlight has now shifted onto event contracts, Robinhood, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Just one day after its launch, Robinhood took a time-out on their event contract product, designed to allow traders to wager on the outcome of Super Bowl LIX. The culprit? You guessed it - the CFTC.
The Rising Star: Kalshi and Event Contract Trading
Robinhood teamed up with Kalshi, the frontrunner in the rapidly expanding event contract and prediction betting space. However, following a request from the CFTC, this offering has been placed on hold.
Event contracts are experiencing a resurgence in popularity in the US, thanks to Kalshi. Although similar in some aspects to traditional betting, event contracts operate differently. Instead of betting on odds or a win/loss scenario, traders buy or sell contracts based on the likelihood of an outcome. Prices of these contracts fluctuate as they are bought and sold, with the potential to earn a profit or take a loss, much like trading real stocks.
How Event Contract Trading Works
Traditionally, event contracts have been utilized to hedge against the outcomes of financial market events, and Kalshi has been given green lights by the CFTC to offer such contracts. Despite this approval, the CFTC has expressed concerns over the legality of Kalshi's Super Bowl product under derivatives laws. Kalshi is collaborating with the CFTC to address these concerns as its product portfolio expands.
Last year, both Robinhood and Kalshi offered event contracts on the outcome of the 2024 presidential election. However, given that only Kalshi had prior approval, working together would have been a safer choice for Robinhood than going solo.
Robinhood, in a blog post, announced the suspension of the Pro Football Championship market, stating:
"Though we are working with the CFTC to understand their concerns, we are temporarily halting the rollout of the Pro Football Championship market. We've introduced the product to roughly 1% of our customers, and for those who already placed trades, we plan to provide the option to close their positions or take them to resolution."
Super Bowl LIX Event Contracts and Kalshi
Kalshi remains enthusiastic, offering event contracts for this year's Super Bowl and other major events, such as predicting Kendrick Lamar's half-time performance and whether it will snow in New York City this month. With over $3 million in trades already facilitated on the Super Bowl game, the young brand is undoubtedly attracting attention.
Kalshi's sports-event contracts—including those for Super Bowl LIX—continue to see active trading, despite the regulatory scrutiny. The CFTC's current stance remains non-interventionist regarding these specific markets, although the agency has yet to formally endorse them.
About the Author:Daniel Craymer, a devoted sports betting enthusiast and editor here, consistently tests new and existing betting platforms using his betting strategies. His carefully planned approach to sports betting make him a valuable resource for anyone looking to refine their own approach.
- Robinhood, in partnership with Kalshi, launched an event contract product to allow traders to wager on the outcome of Super Bowl LIX, but had to suspend it due to concerns from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
- Despite the stoppage of their Super Bowl product, Kalshi continues to offer event contracts for other major events, such as Kendrick Lamar's half-time performance and the likelihood of snow in New York City this month.
- Event contracts, popularized by Kalshi, operate differently from traditional betting, as traders buy or sell contracts based on the likelihood of an outcome, with prices that fluctuate as they are bought and sold.
- Although the CFTC has approved Kalshi to offer event contracts on financial market events, the agency has raised concerns over the legality of Kalshi's Super Bowl product under derivatives laws.
- Daniel Craymer, a sports betting enthusiast and editor, has been following the development of event contract trading platforms like Robinhood and Kalshi, using his betting strategies to test and evaluate their offerings.
