Comment Text:
Dear Chairman and Commissioners,
My name is Brett Franklin, and I'm just an everyday citizen from Tennessee, writing to you about the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Prediction Markets (91 FR 12516). I'm a middle-aged professional with conservative values, and I believe strongly in personal freedom and keeping government overreach in check. From where I stand, I'm better equipped to decide what's right for me than a bloated, often corrupt system. I value the ability to make my own choices, especially when it comes to legal, regulated markets like prediction platforms.
I've used prediction markets a few times myself, and I can tell you they're not some kind of gambling scheme. They're a tool for real economic purposes, like getting better information and hedging risks that affect my life. The prices on these platforms give insights you can't find in polls or from talking heads on TV. I've seen them predict election outcomes and public events with way more accuracy than so-called experts. That kind of forecasting helps regular folks like me make informed decisions, whether it's about finances or just understanding the world. Plus, these markets let me hedge against uncertainties, like policy changes that could hit my wallet hard.
I also believe the U.S. should be leading the charge in financial innovation, not handing the advantage to other countries. If we ban or over-restrict prediction markets, we're just pushing activity to unregulated offshore platforms where there's no oversight at all. I'd much rather see a regulated market, like Kalshi on a CFTC-registered exchange, where there are rules and protections in place. It's common sense. Shutting down these markets because of a few bad actors or worries about insider trading doesn't solve anything. It just punishes law-abiding people like me who want to participate. Informed trading actually improves price discovery, and that benefits everyone in the market, not just the traders.
I'm particularly drawn to your questions 7 through 14 on public interest and 15 through 22 on defining legitimate markets versus gaming. I urge you to recognize that event contracts aren't gambling. They serve real purposes, like risk management and price discovery, just like other investments. Calling them gaming is a stretch and ignores their value. And to questions 29 through 32 on inside information, I'd say the CFTC already has tools to tackle manipulation or insider trading. Use those instead of blanket restrictions.
I ask you to support proportionate regulation of prediction markets. Don't ban them or tie them up with rules that make participation impossible for regular citizens. Keep the U.S. competitive, keep these markets safe and regulated here at home, and trust folks like me to make our own decisions in a fair system.
Sincerely,
Brett Franklin
