Barkley Sells Polymarket Stake Under NFL Rules
Saquon Barkley said he sold his Polymarket investment following NFL direction. In the same period, the NBA signed a framework agreement with prediction markets, while Utah filed a criminal complaint against Kalshi executives.
LeBron James signed a landmark deal with Polymarket last month, after his long-term contract with DraftKings ended. Eli Manning, Derek Jeter and Spike Lee are also among the celebrities who support the company.
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, however, has cut ties with Polymarket. Speaking to Front Office Sports, Barkley said he sold his investment on the NFL's direction. The league continues to oppose the proposals of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission regarding sports event contracts.
This week, the NBA also signed a comprehensive memorandum of understanding with the CFTC. The league named Kalshi and Polymarket as preferred partners and gained authority to block contracts it considers objectionable.
Lawsuits by more than a dozen states against Kalshi are ongoing. Utah Attorney General Derek Brown, meanwhile, filed a criminal complaint against the company's CEO Tarek Mansour and COO Luana Lopes Lara. The complaint, prepared after an undercover agent placed 12 sports trades on the platform, includes charges of promoting online gambling and engaging in illegal activity in a pattern. A Kalshi spokesperson called it an abuse of authority.
Kalshi completed a $1 billion funding round on Thursday, and its valuation rose to $40 billion. The valuation, which was $22 billion in May, climbed 81.8 percent in a few months. On the same day, Polymarket halted trading on its offshore exchange for about four hours. A security breach drained funds from hundreds of users.
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