Kalshi sets oversight panel to curb insider trading before Super Bowl

Kalshi on Thursday unveiled an independent surveillance committee and new partnerships to monitor its prediction markets ahead of Super Bowl 60, with more than $168 million already wagered on the platform.

The company explained that the panel will expand oversight of trading activity, deliver a quarterly rundown to outside counsel, and publish statistics on investigations into suspicious activity. Kalshi is integrating surveillance tools from Solidus Labs and working with Daniel Taylor, who runs the Wharton Forensic Analytics Lab, to strengthen monitoring “to detect, investigate, and address market abuse.”

The surveillance committee includes Lisa Pinheiro, a managing principal and data scientist at Analysis Group focused on market manipulation. Kalshi’s lawyer, Robert DeNault, has been appointed head of enforcement to coordinate with the panel. Brian Nelson, a former U.S. Treasury official who worked on terrorism and financial intelligence, has been engaged to advise on trading surveillance and compliance.

The announcement arrives three days before Super Bowl 60, a high-traffic period for prediction markets, amid increased scrutiny from regulators and lawmakers. Several states have challenged sports event contracts as illegal gambling, a characterization disputed by Kalshi and other platforms.

Kalshi is preparing product changes aimed at professional traders, including seeking regulatory approval to offer margin trading in the United States, according to people familiar with the matter. The company has been in discussions with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for several months on enabling margin for event contracts, these people noted.

Kalshi indicated that the expanded oversight, partnerships and staffing are intended to add data analytics and investigative capacity across markets tied to sports, politics and other events.

As we reported earlier, Kalshi held a supermarket giveaway in Manhattan, covering up to $50 per shopper. The company shared photos and counted 1,795 sign-ups, with videos showing lines stretching for blocks. Kalshi says its promos funnel attention back to trading contracts on real-world outcomes, from sports results to macro data releases.