Baltimore has taken legal action against prediction market operators Kalshi and Polymarket, accusing them of running illegal, unlicensed sports betting services within the city. Mayor Brandon M. Scott and the City Council filed lawsuits on August 13, 2026, in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City. The complaints name both Kalshi and Polymarket, plus their affiliated companies, and focus on alleged violations of Baltimore’s Consumer Protection Ordinance.
The Kalshi complaint reaches further than the Polymarket one. Alongside Kalshi Inc. and KalshiEX LLC, it names Robinhood Markets, Robinhood Derivatives, Webull Corporation, Webull Financial and Coinbase Financial Markets as defendants, on the basis that all three let users trade Kalshi sports contracts without leaving their own apps.
City officials say these companies are disguising sports betting by calling it “event contracts” or prediction market trades. The lawsuits argue that the wagers on these platforms look a lot like the bets you would typically find on legal sportsbooks. Baltimore claims the setup lets both companies offer sports wagering without the licences Maryland requires from the Lottery and Gaming Control Agency.
Both companies rejected the claims. Kalshi called the action political theatre and said it operates lawfully under the exclusive jurisdiction of its federal regulator. Polymarket said city-specific action runs counter to the CFTC’s established framework, arguing that prediction markets on CFTC-registered exchanges are governed by federal law rather than a patchwork of state and local rules.
Baltimore Says Prediction Markets Function Like Sportsbooks
Baltimore’s lawsuits claim the two companies offer bets no different from those on licensed sportsbooks. The complaints point out that Baltimore residents can bet on game outcomes, point spreads, totals, player statistics, and other classic sportsbook options. Changing the name of the product does not change what it is, the city argues. While Kalshi and Polymarket refer to their offerings as event contracts or prediction market trades, Baltimore says these are essentially sports bets and qualify as illegal gambling under Maryland law.
Prediction markets have grown fast. Pew Research Center figures put combined monthly global trading volume on Kalshi and Polymarket at under $5 billion in September 2025, rising to roughly $24 billion by April 2026.
Mayor Brandon M. Scott put it plainly. The companies, he said, are “running sportsbooks without licenses and betting that a new label will put them above the law.” It won’t, he added. The lawsuits also focus on the platforms’ similarities to traditional online sportsbooks. Baltimore notes that the companies provide moneyline wagers, point spreads, tournament results, and player performance propositions. The city uses those similarities to argue the products are sports betting rather than a distinct form of prediction market activity.
What Baltimore Wants, and How the Companies Responded
The lawsuits go beyond just the wagers. Baltimore alleges that both Kalshi and Polymarket market their platforms in ways that confuse consumers about whether the products are legal and properly regulated. According to the city, the companies make gambling accessible while claiming a regulatory status that does not shield them from Baltimore’s consumer protection laws. Officials warn the conduct puts vulnerable groups, including young people and those with gambling problems, at risk of serious financial harm.
City Solicitor Ebony M. Thompson said Baltimore will exercise its consumer protection authority to challenge practices it sees as unlawful or misleading. She rejected the notion that federal regulations alone would put these companies beyond the reach of local consumer protection efforts. Baltimore also claims that Kalshi and Polymarket compete with licensed sportsbooks without facing the same scrutiny. The complaints note that regulated operators face oversight, taxation, responsible-gambling requirements and consumer protections, while the prediction market companies avoid those obligations.
The city wants several types of relief. The complaint runs to eight counts of deceptive and unfair trade practices under Baltimore’s Consumer Protection Ordinance. Baltimore asks the court for civil penalties, injunctions, repayment to affected consumers, the return of profits described as ill-gotten, and other remedies allowed by law. The legal team includes Baltimore City Law Department officials Ebony M. Thompson, Sara Gross, and Thomas Webb, along with DiCello Levitt attorneys Adam Levitt, Dan Ferri, Joseph “JJ” Nelson, and Andrea Shang. These lawsuits put Kalshi and Polymarket’s sports related prediction markets in the spotlight in Baltimore. The city is arguing that these products amount to sports betting and should fall under Maryland’s gambling and consumer protection rules.
