Former congressman George Santos will pay more than $35,000 to settle a regulator’s claim that he manipulated wagers on prediction market Kalshi over whether he would attend the State of the Union.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said Friday that Santos made over $17,000 by making timely bets on his attendance at the president’s annual address to Congress. The regulator accused him of making misrepresentations and omissions on social media that influenced the price of his positions and said he improperly traded on an event that he had the power to influence.
Santos’s attorney Joseph Murray acknowledged his client made bets about his State of the Union attendance but denied that the ex-congressman intentionally manipulated the market. Murray said the settlement didn’t require Santos to admit wrongdoing.
“He chose a prompt, practical resolution rather than protracted, costly litigation,” Murray said. “And that choice should not be mistaken for an admission of any wrongdoing, because it is not one.”
Source: George Santos Settles Regulator’s Claim Over ‘Manipulative Activity’ on Kalshi – WSJ