CFTC chairman quoted in the agency's April 2, 2026 announcement of lawsuits challenging state restrictions on prediction markets.
Case
Connecticut's September action against nine prediction-market companies intensified a dispute over sports-event contracts. State officials invoke gambling laws and consumer safeguards, while the CFTC argues that federal authority displaces the challenged restrictions.
Role at the time: Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Responding to
Can Connecticut regulate sports prediction markets as gambling?
“The CFTC will continue to safeguard its exclusive regulatory authority over these markets and defend market participants against overzealous state regulators”
Selig criticizes the state regulators' intervention and argues that inconsistent requirements undermine consumer protection. That is substantive criticism of the challenged restrictions, beyond a disagreement over how to describe the contracts.
Statement dates: April 2, 2026
