Unlike several other state regulators that resigned their memberships from the National Council on Problem Gambling following a controversial donation by Kalshi, Massachusetts has opted to stay, at least for now.
“When it comes up for renewal, I’m sure we’ll have another conversation,” said Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) Chairman Jordan Maynard.
The five-member commission discussed the possibility of following in the footsteps of Michigan, Ohio, and Nevada in leaving the organization, but expressed support for the NGPC’s mission.
In May, the NCPG announced a $2 million donation from prediction market platform Kalshi to support a new initiative focused on “trader health and safety” and to establish a new “Financial Services and Trading” membership category.
That donation caused the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) to express concern about the partnership and withdraw its membership.
In a letter to the NCPG, the MGCB stated that Kalshi has been involved in litigation with Michigan and several other states over its offering of sports event contracts without state gaming licenses.
Currently in Massachusetts, a judge issued a preliminary injunction to block Kalshi from offering sports-event wagers in the state, which the company successfully paused pending appeal. The case has advanced to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
The MGCB also expressed concern that the partnership could undermine state regulatory efforts. The Ohio Casino Control Commission and the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling also withdrew their memberships.
In response to these developments, Mark Vander Linden, the MGC’s director of research and responsible gaming, discussed the partnership with Heather Maurer, NCPG executive director, and Cole Wogoman, NCPG director of policy and partnerships.
On Thursday, Vander Linden briefed the commission on those discussions, including defining the Financial Trading Health and Safety Initiative as a coordinated national initiative to advance responsible trading and trader health within financial market environments.
“The buying and selling of event-based futures contracts can carry risks similar to traditional gambling, including impulsive behavior, financial harm, and the potential for escalating gambling-related issues,” Maurer and Wogoman told Vander Linden.
When Vander Linden asked if the two-year initiative meant NCPG was endorsing prediction markets or Kalshi, the NCPG said no.
“NCPG remains neutral on the legality of gambling, wagering, and prediction markets,” the NCPG executives said. “This initiative is not an endorsement of any products or platform.”
Maurer and Wogoman also explained that the initiative complements their ongoing advocacy efforts, including engagement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on prediction markets.
The MGC holds a “Silver”-level organizational membership with the NCPG, at a cost of $2,500 for fiscal-year 2026.
Vander Linden said he understood the concerns raised by the Kalshi partnership, but recommended the MGC maintain its NCPG membership at this time. The commission agreed with the recommendation unanimously, but with some reservations.
Commissioner Paul Brodeur urged his fellow commissioners and Vander Linden to keep an eye on any future developments.
“The beef with the prediction markets is really not the product itself, but the way they describe and market it and the fact it is not regulated,” Brodeur said. “It’s gambling. It could be, I suspect, welcomed into the marketplace if they were another sports betting operator and approached their business that way.”
Brodeur added that if they were like other operators, he suspected the Commission would let them into the state, but “that’s not where we’re at.”
Commissioner Eileen O’Brien agreed that the MGC should keep an eye on Kalshi, which is in a gray area with an overlay with what the state regulates.
“There may come a time sooner, rather than later, where we need to quit,” O’Brien said.
