Ex-NJ Gov Blasts Prediction Markets, Questions Their Legality

Prediction markets are in the center of attention, amid a new $436,000 win on Polymarket, which came after someone placed a wager on President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela to be toppled by the end of January. 

The bet – along with a few others – came hours before US President Donald Trump announced the Latin American leader’s capture, raising qualms over “insider trading.” 

Former Top Lawmaker Blasts Predictrion Markets Over Their Legal Status 

Did someone with knowledge of the matter turn to a prediction market platform to capitalize on that knowledge? Either way, the issue says former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is not what prediction markets are used to bet on, but the fact that they are “illegal” and “harmful,” as well as lack built-in consumer protection measures.

Christie made his remarks during an interview with CNBC’s Contessa Brewer, outlining his opposition to the segment, and after only recently stepping in as a strategic advisor for the American Gaming Association, which has criticized the sector, and even lost prominent members who chose to launch their own operations in the vertical over maintaining the trade group’s line.

“These markets are, bottom line, against the law, and they need to be stopped. They’re illegal. You can’t bet on sports outside of the state structures,” Christie remarked, arguing that the CFTC may not regulate prediction markets, and equating them to “sports betting.” 

Lacking Safeguards and Threatening Integrity

In his view, platforms that argue the opposite are doing so knowing they are in the wrong. He further pointed out that sports betting companies and gaming regulators are bound to a very specific code of conduct, whereas prediction markets are less hands-on and likely to intervene in instances of manipulation.

Christie added, specifically referring to the potential to undermine NCAA competitions: “Imagine how much that could be manipulated. A gambler offers a huge amount of money for a young man or woman not to go into the transfer portal. That doesn’t just distort competition – it can corrupt these athletes and change the nature of the sport.”