U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture Full Committee Hearing on “CFTC Reauthorization: Stakeholder Perspectives” Testimony of David Bean, Chairman , Indian Gaming Association December 11, 2025 Chairman Thompson, Ranking Member Craig, and Members of the Committee, on behalf of the Indian Gaming Association (“IGA”), thank you for holding this hearing to receive stakeholder perspectives for the reauthorization of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission. My name is David Bean, and I serve as the Chairman of the Indian Gaming Association. Founded in 1985, IGA is a national association of federally recognized Indian tribes united behind the mission of protecting tribal sovereignty and preserving the ability of tribal governments to attain economic self-sufficiency through gaming and other forms of economic development. We appreciate this timely opportunity to provide testimony for your hearing to examine the need to reauthorize the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”). We share the views expressed by witnesses and Committee members during the hearing that as Congress considers the CFTC reauthorization it must also revisit the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) itself. Inaction by the CFTC has led to the explosion of prediction market platforms offering event contracts that are in fact nationwide online sports gambling sites. In January of 2025, prediction markets initially offered simple “yes” or “no” bets on the outcomes of a single sporting event. However, the CFTC’s complete lack of oversight or even questioning of swaps or transactions relating to sporting events has emboldened prediction markets to offer a wider range of gambling options, including parlays, individual player proposition bets, and more. Just yesterday, KalshiEX LLC, notified the CFTC that it has self-certified contracts on whether college athletes will enter the transfer portal. The move drew immediate condemnation: "The NCAA vehemently opposes college sports prediction markets…. It is already bad enough that student-athletes face harassment and abuse for lost bets on game performance, and now Kalshi wants to offer bets on their transfer decisions and status. This is absolutely unacceptable and would place even greater pressure on student-athletes while threatening competition integrity and recruiting processes. Their decisions and future should not be gambled with, especially in an unregulated marketplace that does not follow any rules of legitimate sports betting operators." https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/47341610/prediction-market-kalshi-intends- offer-trading-portal It is crystal clear that prediction markets will not stop at sports gambling. They will continue to push the envelope as long as the CFTC continues to turn a blind eye. This activity represents a direct threat to tribal governments, state governments, the public, and the very integrity of American sports. We respectfully urge Congress to amend the CEA to
1
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs