A legal fight between Native American tribes and Silicon Valley-backed prediction market firms is intensifying. At the center are Kalshi Inc. and its partner Robinhood Markets Inc., with tribal leaders arguing that these online event-based wagering products threaten a core source of funding for Indigenous communities across the United States.
Bloomberg reported that a coalition of Native American tribes and organizations has filed a legal brief in support of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin in its lawsuit against Kalshi and Robinhood. The groups argue that the companies’ products, which let users wager on real-world outcomes, amount to gambling conducted outside established federal, state, and tribal gaming systems.
Tribal groups say gaming revenue supports sovereignty and public services
The brief is backed by organizations including the Indian Gaming Association and the National Congress of American Indians. Their position is that gaming is not merely a commercial business for tribes. It is tied directly to tribal sovereignty, self-determination, and the ability to fund essential public functions.
According to the tribes, gaming revenue has helped pay for government services, social programs, and economic development. They argue that this framework was built through years of legal and political struggle, and that prediction market platforms weaken those protections by offering similar wagering activity outside the existing rules.
Kalshi points to CFTC oversight as jurisdiction becomes the key issue
Tribes have historically held a strong position in gaming outside Las Vegas because of legal carve-outs allowing gambling on Indigenous land. In the current dispute, they contend that Kalshi and Robinhood are bypassing those protections and violating long-standing law.
Kalshi disputes that view. The company says its regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission supersedes state and tribal authority, while Robinhood says its products operate within a compliant framework. That leaves a wider question in play: where prediction markets fit relative to traditional gambling law.
Pressure grows from tribes and states even as the sector expands
Legal resistance is growing not only from tribal groups but also from states such as Nevada. Even so, prediction markets continue to gain momentum. Rivals such as Polymarket are entering media partnerships, while large exchanges including Intercontinental Exchange and CME Group are moving into the category.
The dispute now reaches beyond one lawsuit. It has become a broader contest over who gets to regulate event-based trading products and whether they should be treated as financial instruments or gambling activity.