The NBA is eyeing Kalshi and Polymarket as its “preferred” prediction markets and has signed a memorandum of understanding with the CFTC to ensure all trading tied to its games is regulated, the league and the regulator have jointly announced.
The announcements pair a commercial arrangement with a regulatory one. On the commercial side, Kalshi and Polymarket have become the NBA’s main platforms for prediction-market contracts on league events. Additionally, the NBA and the CFTC have agreed to share information and hold regular talks to help protect the integrity of basketball-related markets. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig said the agreement is part of the agency’s growing work with sports leagues. The NBA joins the NHL and Major League Baseball in these efforts to protect users from any forms of insider trading, fraud, and other forms of prediction market abuse.
NBA says it wants to protect its users from forms of market abuse
In his statement, Selig also thanked NBA Commissioner Adam Silver for working with the agency. The deals also come with rules. Yahoo Sports, citing the Associated Press, reported that the NBA will limit the types of contracts Kalshi and Polymarket can offer on its games. NBA and team staff are also not allowed to trade on league games, while the platforms are mandated to report suspicious activity. Both platforms must also share information during investigations into suspicious trading.
Scott Kaufman-Ross, the NBA’s head of media distribution and partnerships, said it was better to bring these activities under regulation than leave them unregulated. “If you’re going to be betting on our games or trading on our games or playing fantasy around our games, it should be regulated rather than unregulated,” he told the Associated Press. The NBA said it already works with sportsbook partners to spot unusual betting activity and has noted suspicious patterns via this partnership in the past.
The NBA is the third major sports league to sign an agreement with the CFTC this year. Major League Baseball was the first, signing a deal on March 19, 2026. This deal was described by the CFTC as the first agreement of its kind with a professional sports league. The agreement allows both sides to share information and work together on contracts linked to baseball. The NHL signed its agreement on May 21, 2026. Both sides named representatives to discuss integrity issues and share information privately.
The NBA had also contacted the CFTC before this week’s deal. In a letter dated May 1, 2025, to then-Acting Chairman Caroline D. Pham, NBA vice president and assistant general counsel Alexandra Roth said protecting the sport’s integrity was the league’s top priority. The timing of the deal coincides with federal investigators increasing efforts to look into gambling cases involving current and former NBA players.
Former NBA guard Malik Beasley is reportedly in talks with the Department of Justice about a possible plea deal over an alleged scheme linked to his play during the 2023-24 season, Yahoo Sports reported. The NBA is also dealing with the fallout from the investigation that led to Terry Rozier’s arrest on October 23, 2025. The signed MOU itself focuses on sharing information and keeping in regular contact, rather than giving the CFTC new enforcement powers. The aim for both sides is to keep markets linked to professional basketball fair and transparent.
