Coinbase Financial Markets Inc. has agreed to stop offering new sports-event contracts to Michigan customers by midnight on Saturday, according to the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB).
The MGCB also confirmed Wednesday that Coinbase has agreed to close out any remaining open customer positions by the same deadline.
The agreement, negotiated between the state and Coinbase, is the latest in a series of regulatory actions regulators have taken this year against prediction market operators, firms the MGCB describes as “unlicensed operators offering sports wagering products.”
Michigan also reached an agreement with Robinhood Derivatives LLC, as well as a state court preliminary injunction obtained against KalshiEX LLC.
“Coinbase joining Robinhood and Kalshi in stepping back from these unlicensed sports contracts underscores Michigan’s commitment to enforcing its gaming laws,” MGCB Executive Director Henry Williams said in a statement Wednesday.
“Operators are halting these activities because they face significant legal consequences for continuing to offer them in our state,” Williams said.
Coinbase will cease offering sports-related event contracts in Michigan, including those traded on Kalshi and other designated contract markets.
In exchange, the state has agreed to not take enforcement action against Coinbase so long as the company remains in compliance, and while related appeals proceed before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
The court denied Coinbase’s request for a preliminary injunction in August. Coinbase’s appeal of that ruling is pending before the Sixth Circuit and has been stayed pending resolution of a related appeals involving Robinhood, Polymarket and Kalshi.
According to the MGCB, this agreement does not resolve the underlying legal dispute over whether Michigan may regulate Commodity Futures Trading Commission-registered event contracts as gambling.
“It preserves all parties’ rights, obligations, and defenses pending a final ruling from the Sixth Circuit or the U.S. Supreme Court,” the MGCB said in a statement.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel warned prediction market firms that whether by agreement or court order, “we intend to bring all sports betting into compliance with the law.”
