Comment Text:
Dear Chairman and Commissioners,
My name is Tim Seymour, and I'm a Data Scientist from New Jersey. I'm writing in response to the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Prediction Markets (91 FR 12516) to share my perspective as someone who actively trades on platforms like Kalshi. I have serious concerns about how some of these platforms are operating today, especially when it comes to their overlap with gaming.
I know people who have self-excluded from sportsbooks to manage gambling issues, only to end up on Kalshi as a way to bet on sports outcomes again. To me, this shows that event contracts on platforms like Kalshi often function as gaming, not as the serious financial tools they're claimed to be. It doesn't sit right with me that 18-year-olds can sign up and essentially gamble on sports through these markets. I believe the CFTC needs to classify many of these event contracts as gaming and subject them to the same strict regulations as sportsbooks, including age limits and self-exclusion protections. Your questions on defining gaming versus legitimate markets (Questions 15-22) hit on this directly, and I urge you to lean toward a stricter interpretation for contracts that mimic sports betting.
Thank you for considering my input. I hope the CFTC will either abolish prediction markets or support prediction markets with rules that protect consumers and ensure these platforms aren't just loopholes for gaming.
Sincerely,
Tim Seymour
