North Carolina Bars State Workers From Prediction-Market Bets Using Inside Information as Trading Hit $63.5 Billion
Updated
Updated · WRAL News · May 27
North Carolina Bars State Workers From Prediction-Market Bets Using Inside Information as Trading Hit $63.5 Billion
1 articles · Updated · WRAL News · May 27
Josh Stein said he will sign an executive order barring North Carolina state employees from using nonpublic work information to place bets on prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
$63.5 billion was traded on prediction markets in 2025, Stein said, arguing that wagers tied to government decisions can undermine public trust when insiders appear positioned to profit.
The move extends North Carolina's State Ethics Act, and Stein said he has no evidence that state employees are currently making such bets.
The crackdown follows a recent U.S. Senate ban on member and staff betting in prediction markets and an April case accusing a Fort Bragg master sergeant of using confidential information to win a Maduro-related wager.
Prediction markets have drawn wider scrutiny as nine linked Polymarket accounts reportedly made $2.4 million on Iran-war bets, part of more than $1 billion traded on military decisions and outcomes.
Insiders won millions betting on war; can new government bans actually prevent this kind of corruption?
As states and federal agencies clash over control, what is the future for billion-dollar prediction markets?