A former White House teleprompter operator has agreed to pay $172,539 after U.S. regulators found he used advance access to President Donald Trump's speeches to make more than $107,500 trading prediction market contracts.
Advance Knowledge of Presidential Speeches
Between December 2025 and February 2026, Gabriel Perez worked as a White House teleprompter operator while trading presidential "mention market" contracts. Such contracts are event contracts whose outcomes depend on whether particular words or phrases are used during a presidential speech. Perez's position gave him access to speeches before Trump delivered them publicly, allowing him to know information directly connected to the contracts he was trading.
Settlement Terms
The CFTC settlement requires Perez to return $107,539.02 in profits and pay a $65,000 civil monetary penalty. Perez has agreed to a three-year trading ban and must cease further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act. The $65,000 penalty was substantially reduced under the agency's new cooperation policy because of his "exemplary cooperation" during the investigation. The CFTC credited KalshiEX with assisting the investigation.
Other Insider Trading Cases in Prediction Markets
Another federal case centers on U.S. Army Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke, accused of using classified military information to trade contracts on Polymarket connected to the operation targeting Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. Prosecutors allege Van Dyke made about $409,881 through 13 Venezuela-related trades. In a separate case, Kalshi imposed a $20,397.58 penalty and two-year suspension on an editor affiliated with YouTube creator MrBeast who traded contracts connected to MrBeast content using confidential information.
Kalshi Expands Compliance Controls
Kalshi has introduced several controls to identify traders who may have access to confidential information. In June, the exchange began requiring users in certain higher-risk markets to disclose their employers. The platform later integrated with StarCompliance, a system used by financial firms to monitor employee trading. Its trade surveillance controls include a whistleblower reporting channel and a risk-scoring process applied to proposed markets before they are listed. The CFTC in August reminded regulated entities that pricing information must clearly identify the products as contracts traded on a regulated exchange, warning that American-style sportsbook odds could mislead customers.
