The NBA named Kalshi and Polymarket its preferred prediction-market exchanges on October 26, pairing commercial partnerships with restrictions on trading and a separate information-sharing agreement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The league's announcement says its platform agreements limit permissible NBA markets, prohibit league and team personnel from trading NBA event contracts, and require information sharing about investigations and suspicious trading.
Kalshi and Polymarket will receive rights to use NBA intellectual property and market their partnerships in the United States. They will also receive official statistics through Sportradar to operate and settle authorized NBA markets. The NBA has expanded its DraftKings agreement to include prediction markets and plans further partnerships.
What the safeguards cover
The CFTC says its agreement establishes regular communication with the NBA about integrity and fair, transparent prediction markets. The agency identifies insider trading and fraud among the abuses it wants to address.
These measures give the league channels to receive information and restrict its partners' offerings. They do not establish that suspicious activity will always be detected or prevented.
What remains unresolved
The commercial arrangements do not settle the dispute over who regulates sports event contracts. The Associated Press reports that more than a dozen states are involved in litigation, while the CFTC maintains that it has exclusive oversight.
AP also reports that the league retains approval rights over the types of markets offered on its games. The financial terms of the multiyear platform agreements were not disclosed.
Neither announcement resolves the state-federal dispute or establishes nationwide legality for sports event contracts.
