George Santos, the former House member who was expelled from Congress for ethics violations while facing a federal indictment, has been banned for life from the prediction market platform Kalshi, the company said Monday.
The decision comes after Santos was fined earlier this year by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for insider trading on Kalshi. Santos is the first person ever to receive a lifetime ban from the platform.
Asked for comment, Santos told The Washington Post that he was not “intimidated by gambling platforms.”
The company publicized five new enforcement cases related to platform violations, including the case of billionaire donor Stephen Cloobeck, who was cited for betting on his friend Eric Swalwell, at the time a Democratic congressman. Santos was the only individual to be banned for life.
“All but one individual (George Santos) cooperated with our Compliance Department and will be banned temporarily,” Kalshi spokeswoman Elisabeth Diana said in an email to The Post. “Mr. Santos faces additional financial penalties and will be banned permanently from trading on Kalshi given his lack of cooperation.”
In addition to the permanent suspension, the company is imposing a penalty of $71,356 against Santos.
In January, Kalshi listed an event contract in which users could invest money into contracts associated with whether public figures, including Santos, would attend the State of the Union address. According to a CFTC investigation, Santos purchased contracts on the market he had influence over — insider trading — and made posts on social media that affected the value of the Yes and No contracts associated with his attendance. In total, he made a profit of more than $17,500.
In July, the CFTC ordered him to return the profits he made and pay a separate fine of $17,500.
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The post Kalshi bans former GOP congressman George Santos for life appeared first on Washington Post.
