OGDEN, Utah — Utah could be looking at taking action against the prediction market company Kalshi. In new court documents obtained by FOX 13 News, Kalshi claims the company received information that the state is looking at possible enforcement, so they want a federal judge to file an injunction blocking Utah from any enforcement action.
Politics
Kalshi asks judge for new injunction against Utah
With recent headlines around prediction markets, we spoke to people in Ogden to see how they feel about these platforms.
"At first I thought it was a joke, and then realized it’s actually super sinister,” said Austin Buckius, who lives in West Haven.
Some people on 25th Street said they have never heard of these prediction markets, and some did not have much of an opinion. But some people, like Buckius, said they feel an online platform where people can predict real-world events is a dangerous slippery slope.
"I think in a lot of ways, for common people, it's gambling, and I think that's my biggest issue," he said.
Buckius also said he is concerned about the possibilities of insider trading and people getting addicted to them.
Prediction markets work on the concept of contracts on future outcomes. Utah leaders say those are already illegal under the state's ban on gambling. Kalshi claims that what they do is not gambling.
Aimee McElroy owns Moonstone Manor on 25th Street. She said she is worried about what a potential explicit ban on prediction markets could look like.
"I feel like there’s no problem with them. I think that we're all adults and we should be able to bet on things if we want to. So I think it should be legal,” she said.
"It's one of the few times I feel like being more restrictive with government wouldn't be the worst thing,” Buckius said.
People are keeping an eye on what happens next.
"I think we can all make our own decisions and deal with the consequences, whatever those may or may not be,” McElroy said.
