The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has handed Gabriel Perez, President Donald Trump‘s former teleprompter, a $65,000 fine for wagering on what Trump would say during his speeches at Kalshi. In addition, Perez has to forfeit the profits from the trades, totaling around $100,000, and faces a three-year trading ban.
“In total, Perez traded in 14 Trump-mention markets and traded profitably in 39 of 43 contracts. Perez generated $107,539.02 in profits”, according to the CFTC.
The regulator said Perez used his position to gain insider knowledge of what Trump would say in the speeches to profit from the markets. The White House terminated Perez’s employment shortly after the news broke last month. Trump branded Perez a “disgrace” for his actions.
Perez Cooperated With Investigation
The CFTC said it “recognizes the extraordinary cooperation Perez provided in the underlying investigation, which assisted in the swift resolution of this matter.”
The Maryland resident admitted to reviewing the script of Trump’s speeches before making trades and “fully accepted responsibility for his violative conduct.”
The CFTC also thanked Kalshi for its assistance in the investigation. The company said it identified Perez’s insider trading through an internal investigation and flagged it to the CFTC.
“It doesn’t matter who you are: violate our rules or federal law, and you will face the consequences,” Kalshi Head of Enforcement Robert Denault wrote in a post on X.
A Kalshi surveillance investigation caught a White House staffer engaging in prohibited trading activity. Today this individual was subjected to penalties by the CFTC and by our exchange.
— robertjdenault (@robertjdenault) August 29, 2026
It doesn’t matter who you are: violate our rules or federal law and you will face the… pic.twitter.com/fyKFEzcXAv
The results of the investigation come not long after CFTC Chair Michael Selig denied that the markets existed on a US-regulated platform. Kalshi is fully regulated by the CFTC.
CFTC Not Sending Strong Message, Claims Former Commissioner
Former CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero said the $65,000 fine is insufficient to deter future insider trading.
“Generally, the CFTC should provide an incentive for defendants to cooperate,” Romero said. “But this is insider trading at the highest level of government – the White House. With this small penalty, the CFTC gave away the chance to send a strong message to deter future insider trading.”
Unlike other cases, the CFTC is not pursuing criminal charges against Perez. The agency filed charges of commodities fraud against Google engineer Michele Spagnuolo earlier this year. Spagnuolo similarly used his position to trade on markets with insider knowledge. He made $1.2 million in profit from wagering on Google search-related markets at Polymarket.
The CFTC also filed criminal charges against US soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who wagered on when Venezuela leader Nicolas Maduro would leave his post. Van Dyke was involved in the operation that led to Maduro’s capture.
Both Van Dyke and Spagnuolo argue that the charges against them should be dismissed because the CFTC has no jurisdiction over Polymarket’s international platform. They also argue that the markets do not fall under the swaps category in the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA).
Last week, news broke of additional impending insider trading cases on prediction markets, including one involving a US serviceman and another involving a KPMG employee.
CFTC Fined George Santos Over Insider Trading
Last month, the CFTC also fined former Congressman George Santos $17,500 for trading on whether he would attend the State of the Union address.
In the order against Santos, the CFTC said he manipulated the price of whether he would attend through posts on social media. He then exited his positions with a total profit of $17,569.98.
In a statement released on X, Santos’ lawyer said he did not intend to deceive anyone.
“Mr. Santos concealed neither his intention to attend nor his change of plans to not attend the SOTU from anyone. There was absolutely no intent to deceive any person, nor intent to manipulate any market,” read the statement.
Like Perez, the CFTC also banned Santos from trading for three years. His lawyer said the lenient punishment reflects the crime’s lack of severity.
“The terms speak for themselves. This was a civil, administrative resolution; there are no criminal charges and no finding or admission of liability. The agreed financial terms are modest by any measure of a federal regulatory matter, and Mr. Santos has agreed to a limited, time-defined period concerning trading on registered platforms,” the statement added.
Santos Rails Against Kalshi
Since agreeing to the penalty, Santos has railed against Kalshi. He previously acted as a paid ambassador for rival Polymarket, but the company dropped him after the scandal broke.
The day after the CFTC announced it had fined Santos, he took to X to say Kalshi should be classified as a gambling platform.
It’s time to reclassify @Kalshi and recognize them as a gambling platform!
— George Santos (@Georgesantos) August 1, 2026
In a subsequent post, he labeled Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour as “the Lebanese anchor baby” and called for co-founder Luana Lopes Lara to be deported to her native Brazil.
He added, “Starting September I will be rallying the troops in DC and will fight tooth and nail to recategorize them as a gambling website!”
Santos was sentenced to 87 months in prison last year after pleading guilty to identity theft and wire fraud. He allegedly stole donors’ identities and credit card information and used them to make unauthorized political contributions. Trump released him after serving just three months in prison.
It is unclear if Trump had any involvement in the CFTC cases against Santos and his former teleprompter. He has given his full backing to the agency to regulate prediction markets amid nationwide legal scrutiny.
