The stakes are escalating in the bitter fight over U.S. online sports betting.
Kalshi, a federally regulated prediction market that states and tribal governments allege is operating as an illegal sports betting app, has invested $2 million in what appears to be a new public relations campaign focused on addiction.
The company announced a partnership with the gambling industry-supported National Council on Problem Gambling. The two-year “investment” comes amid reporting that Kalshi users crossed $100 million in parlay losses on the platform in 2026.
Kalshi joins NCPG as a “Platinum-level” member. NCPG’s public membership materials list Platinum as its top organizational membership tier, with standard corporation/organization dues of $15,000.
“Kalshi’s contribution will help NCPG expand consumer education campaigns, increase awareness of the warning signs of problematic behavior, and promote responsible trading and healthy decision-making,” an NCPG press release stated.
Kalshi-NCPG Deal Underscores ‘Gambling’
The relationship marks one of Kalshi’s closest public associations with “gambling,” though in the press release, the company’s CEO referred to the product as “trading.”
Meanwhile, Kalshi’s legal troubles mount in numerous courts around the country. States such as Michigan and Massachusetts say in lawsuits that the platform has addictive and unsafe features.
The City of Detroit recently described Kalshi and other prediction markets, which don’t pay state or local taxes on their betting revenue, as “bloodthirsty leeches.”
In March, Arizona announced a criminal case against Kalshi, though a federal judge later blocked the charges. At the time of writing, Minnesota’s governor was considering whether to sign a bill to criminalize prediction markets.
In Ohio, Kalshi was fined $5 million for allegedly targeting people under the legal age to gamble.
Onus on Kalshi Users
The press release announcing the Kalshi-NCPG partnership stated that Kalshi has “trading breaks, self-limits, self-exclusion, and mental health resources available to customers.”
Independent research has consistently shown that these voluntary tools are ineffective at mitigating population-level gambling harm. They do not prevent excessive gambling activity.
Research on voluntary responsible-gambling tools has repeatedly found low uptake and major limitations, especially when the tools require users to recognize their own risk and opt in before harm escalates.
For example, a University of Sydney study found that 83% of users did not use voluntary tools such as deposit limits, timeouts, or self-exclusion. A recent report in Massachusetts underscores extremely low usage of self-exclusion despite an apparently high need for it. Moreover, a 2024 “systematic review” of dozens of studies found that “game responsibly” warnings fall short.
Like other betting apps, most Kalshi users appear to lose money over time, according to numerous reports. Similarly, one study found that Kalshi users had a negative return of 22% after fees.
Bigger Picture for Kalshi-NCPG Deal
The relationship also comes as speculation mounts that federally regulated prediction markets could eventually offer casino-style gambling, such as slots or roulette. Kalshi has not made public comments suggesting that it is considering these products.
The broader concern is that if prediction markets succeed in using federal derivatives law to bypass state gambling rules, the model could invite more casino-like products to be framed as “trading.”
The company recently reached a reported valuation of $22 billion, roughly twice DraftKings’ market value at the time of this report.
Alongside its NCPG partnership, Kalshi backs the lobbying group Coalition for Prediction Markets.
Despite deep Trump family ties to the prediction market sector, a growing number of Democrats are taking money from the industry. Meanwhile, there have been bipartisan efforts on Capitol Hill to rein in the platforms, especially regarding insider betting.