A White House teleprompter operator faces federal scrutiny over allegations he used advance knowledge of President Trump's prepared remarks to place winning bets on a prediction market platform.
Gabriel Perez is under investigation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for allegedly trading on Kalshi, a prediction market where users wager on specific phrases and topics from Trump's speeches. The investigation focuses on whether Perez had improper access to the President's text before delivery and exploited that information for financial gain.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Perez placed bets on "mention markets" tied to Trump's State of the Union address in February and other speeches. The trades were profitable, generating winnings exceeding $100,000.
Kalshi's enforcement team discovered the suspicious activity and flagged it to the CFTC immediately. The platform then froze Perez's account, which prevented him from collecting most of his profits. "Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC after an exchange investigation," Robert DeNault, Kalshi's head of enforcement, said in a statement. "We have been assisting regulators on this matter and provided evidence we collected."
The case underscores growing regulatory concerns about prediction markets and insider trading risks. As these platforms have exploded in popularity, federal agencies have grappled with how to monitor unusual trading patterns and prevent people with material non-public information from gaining unfair advantages.
Perez has cooperated with the CFTC investigation, one source said. The agency has been discussing potential settlement terms with him, which could require returning the profits from the trades. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan declined to pursue a criminal case.
The White House acknowledged the matter briefly. "The White House has strict ethics guidelines that we expect all staffers and officials to follow," spokesperson Davis Ingle told ABC News. "The staffer in question is fully cooperating with the CFTC."
Attempts to reach Perez directly were unsuccessful. A CFTC spokesperson declined to confirm or deny an investigation, citing standard procedure.
Author James Rodriguez: "This case shows that even relatively low-level access to the President's words can translate into real money, and regulators are finally catching up to the gap."
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