Ex-White House staffer penalized for betting on presidential speeches
A former White House teleprompter operator settled insider trading charges with the CFTC, agreeing to forfeit $107,500 in profits and pay a $65,000 fine. Gabriel Perez also received a three-year trading ban for using advance knowledge of President Trump's speeches to wager on prediction markets. The commission cited his cooperation in reducing the civil penalty.
The CFTC settlement represents one of the first major enforcement actions involving prediction markets, a rapidly growing sector where users wager on political and economic outcomes. Perez's position gave him early access to presidential speech drafts, allowing him to anticipate specific language that would move market prices on Kalshi between December 2025 and February 2026.
The case first surfaced in mid-July, prompting the White House to place Perez on unpaid leave. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt publicly condemned the conduct as "a disgrace." The commission's decision to reduce the civil penalty reflects Perez's cooperation during the investigation, though the three-year trading ban remains in force.
This case could establish a precedent for how regulators treat insider information in prediction markets, which have expanded beyond traditional financial instruments. Government employees with access to sensitive material may face heightened scrutiny, and the ruling could deter similar misconduct. Traders and market participants may gain confidence in regulatory oversight, while the case underscores the growing intersection of politics, information access, and speculative trading.