Ohio Casino Control Commission Issues $5 Million Fine Notice to Kalshi
By Robert Linnehan in Sports Betting News
Published:
- The Ohio Casino Control Commission today announced an intended $5 million fine against prediction market company Kalshi
- The Ohio Casino Control Commission issued a notice of intent to fine the company for offering unlicensed sports betting in the state
- Kalshi’s refusal to cease operations in the state forced the commission to issue the fine
The Ohio Casino Control Commission is making its most aggressive move to date to enforce its state gambling laws against Kalshi.
The Ohio Casino Control Commission today issued a notice of intent to Kalshi to impose a civil penalty or monetary fine of $5 million against the prediction market company for offering unlicensed sports betting in the Buckeye State.
“Based upon the foregoing, and pursuant to Ohio law, Kalshi is subject to administrative action for operating or conducting sports gaming without a license, failing to cooperate with the Commission (which includes failing to abide by the Commission’s cease and desist order and failing to provide the Commission with the information it requested), and engaging in conduct that undermines the integrity, or public confidence in, sports gaming in Ohio,” the Ohio Casino Control Commission wrote in its notice of intent to Kalshi.
Ohio Attorney General Lauds Fine
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said on social media platform X that the state put Kalshi “on notice” that its sports event contracts are unlawful gaming.
“Ohio put Kalshi on notice today that its ‘prediction markets’ are unlawful gaming and proposed a $5 million fine. A federal court already agreed with our reading of the law. I wouldn’t bet on how long Kalshi will be operating in Ohio.”
In its letter to Kalshi, the Ohio Casino Control Commission notes the company has offered its “sports event contracts” from approximately January 2025 through the present without a sports betting license. The company forced the commission’s hand to levy the fine by refusing to cease offering its sports event contracts in the state.
“By continuing to operate without seeking licensure, Kalshi has effectively thwarted the Commission from investigating Kalshi’s (and its key employees’) suitability. As a result, the Commission also lacks awareness of whether, or to what extent, Kalshi adheres to the various safeguards and guardrails that Ohio law requires,” the commission wrote in its notice.
Despite offering sports betting in Ohio, the commission reported Kalshi pays no Ohio state taxes on sports gaming revenues and pays no licensing fees.
“Kalshi’s conduct up through the date of this Notice warrants administrative action,” the commission wrote.
According to state law, Kalshi is entitled to a hearing on the potential fine and has 30 days of the date of the notice to request one.
A request for comment to Kalshi on the notice of intent was not returned to Sports Betting Dime.
Legal Wranglings Over Last Year
The Ohio Casino Control Commission and Kalshi have clashed back and forth in state and federal courts over the past year, trying to determine who has regulatory power over the company’s prediction markets.
The commission levied a cease-and-desist notice to Kalshi in March 2025, ordering the company (along with Crypto.com and Robinhood) to cease its sports event contract offerings in the state. Kalshi responded by filing a federal lawsuit against both the Ohio Casino Control Commission and Ohio Attorney General Yost in October 2025.
Filed in the the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, the lawsuit claimed the Ohio Casino Control Commission and Attorney General threatened criminal penalties against Kalshi unless it shuts down event contracts in the state by late October. Additionally, Kalshi reported the Ohio Casino Control Commission sent a letter to licensed sports betting operators on Aug. 25, threatening to revoke Ohio gaming licenses for any operator who partners with Kalshi, even if the partnership occurs in other states.
These actions, Kalshi counsel wrote in the lawsuit, “threaten immediate and irreparable harm, not just to Kalshi but to its customers and commercial counterparties,” leading the company to seek a preliminary and permanent injunction from the two agencies to continue offering its prediction markets in the state.
However, in March 2026 a U.S. District Court Judge ruled against Kalshi’s motion for a preliminary injunction against the Ohio Casino Control Commission and Yost.
U.S. District Court Judge Sarah D. Morrison denied the prediction market company’s motion for a preliminary injunction. In her decision, Morrison backed the state’s interpretation of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA), claiming it does not govern sports-event contracts.
If the preliminary injunction had been awarded to Kalshi, the company would have legally been able to offer its sports event contracts in the state through the course of its lawsuit.
Similar Lawsuit as Other States
Kalshi’s lawsuit against Ohio – and all of its lawsuits against state gaming commissions – revolves around the central question of who regulates sports event contracts, and prediction markets, in general.
Companies such as Robinhood, Kalshi, and Crypto.com believe that state regulatory bodies do not have the right to intrude on the government’s “exclusive” authority to regulate prediction market, filing lawsuits in several states to defend its practices. These companies believe the CFTC is the only regulatory body that can legally block contracts from being offered to customers.
State gaming regulators maintain the markets need to be beholden to regulations, taxes, and license fees that sports betting and gaming operators are required to follow.
The prediction market companies believe their offerings are not required to comply with state laws, as they have been preempted by the Commodity Exchange Act.
Regulatory Writer and Editor
Robert Linnehan covers all regulatory developments in online gambling and sports betting. He specializes in U.S. sports betting news along with casino regulation news as one of the most trusted sources in the country.
