Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul on Thursday announced plans to file lawsuits against major prediction market sites, alleging that they are circumventing state laws governing online gambling.
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul announced plans to take legal action Thursday against several leading prediction market platforms, claiming they are peddling illegal gambling to state residents under the thin veil of financial contracts.
Kaul said Thursday he will file three separate lawsuits in Dane County Circuit Court targeting Kalshi, Coinbase, Polymarket and additional operators. The complaints allege the companies allow Wisconsin bettors to wager on election results, sports contests and other events while charging fees that amount to prohibited commercial gambling.
“These platforms are simply offering another form of sports betting and event wagering that state law has long forbidden,” Kaul said during a virtual briefing.
The Democrat attorney general is asking a judge to declare the operations unlawful and to block the companies from accepting wagers from Wisconsin residents. The suits do not seek financial penalties.
The move comes shortly after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers approved a limited expansion of online sports betting restricted to the state’s 11 tribal casinos under a “hub and spoke” framework. Kaul made clear that the new tribal-only measure does not shield out-of-state operators from enforcement.
Wisconsin has historically maintained strict controls on gambling, preserving exclusive rights for tribes under compacts signed decades ago in exchange for revenue that funds public services
