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Another state, same headache
Coinbase can’t seem to buy a quiet week. Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul filed three complaints in Dane County targeting Coinbase, Kalshi, Robinhood, Polymarket, and Crypto.com over sports prediction markets that the state says are really just unlicensed gambling in fintech clothing.
The core issue: are these bets or products?
The complaints take aim at things like NCAA tournament markets, point-spread contracts, and first-to-ten-points bets. Wisconsin says the platforms are taking a fee on each trade and wants injunctions blocking them from serving state residents. It’s not trying to unwind existing positions, but it is clearly trying to slam the brakes on the business model.
Coinbase is in the crossfire
Coinbase and Robinhood route prediction market orders to Kalshi, which makes the public companies easy targets whenever regulators decide to flex. And flex they are: New York sued Coinbase and Gemini just two days earlier over the same general conduct, and the state is now asking for forfeited profits, triple damages, and a marketing ban on college campuses.
Big picture: the legal fog thickens
Prediction markets are turning into the crypto world’s latest regulatory cage match, with states splitting on whether these contracts are innovative finance or old-school gambling with a nicer app interface. For Coinbase, the risk isn’t just legal fees — it’s whether this whole side business gets boxed in before it can become a real revenue driver.