IGA Chairman exclusive: Prediction markets are 'unchecked, unregulated and illegal'

Following our two-part interview with Chairman Bean, the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) released the following statement regarding the need for congressional action when regulating prediction markets.

"Sports betting that is being conducted through prediction markets violates Tribal, federal and state laws - including the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which expressly provides Tribal governments with exclusive authority to regulate gaming on Indian lands in partnership with states and the NIGC.

The Commodity Exchange Act and the CFTC offer none of these protections. It is no coincidence that the prediction market corporations selected the smallest and weakest financial regulatory agency to push out their self-certified, self-regulated online gambling platforms. Complete inaction by the CFTC proves this point.

Prediction markets have offered sports betting for 11 months now. Just weeks ago, the CFTC issued a statement that the agency has not, to date, made a determination regarding whether these contracts involve a prohibited activity. The prediction market platforms are counting on continued inaction.

We demand that the CFTC do its job, and short of that, we urge Congress to act by amending the CEA to reinforce the existing prohibition against gaming. Tribes have fought for too long and worked too hard to build and preserve the integrity of our industry and the resources that enable tribal governments to provide for their communities."

Here's what Chairman Bean had to say to us on the matter...

Have prediction markets overtaken sweepstakes casinos as the number one threat to Tribal gaming?

We were following the sweepstakes and are still addressing that. Again, it was a complex issue but, coming from the retail industry, I understood what companies such as Coke and Pepsi would do to promote their products. We also understood it was a state-by-state issue, and those folks are ruling sweepstakes-style gaming illegal. Tribes got behind initiatives. We just saw in California, the Governor signed into law banning sweepstakes-style gaming, but quickly taking its place was prediction markets.

Being able to self-certify and grow like wildfire outside of any state or even Tribal regulation is scary. You're not going to have that strong regulatory foundation that has allowed Tribal and commercial gaming to grow. It quickly took the front seat, and now Tibal, state and even regional organizations are on top of it as well. We had a national gathering in Seattle about two weeks ago. The National Congress of American Indians convened and the discussion at our gaming subcommittee was highly attended because folks understand this is a threat, even as they try to wrap their minds around what it is and how it could grow so fast without any regulatory checks or balances. It was just mind-boggling.

We shared handouts with those in attendance, a timeline of the rise of prediction markets and how they started off just over a year ago with contracts being taken out on the Presidential election. That was challenged and they said, 'no, we're only prohibited from engaging in sports betting.' Fast forward two or three months later and they started taking contracts out on the Super Bowl. It's regulated by the CFTC, but they're not equipped to regulate gaming activity, sports betting activity, casino-style. It won't be long before they engage in casino-style gaming.

They're already taking contracts on the outcome of lotteries, Powerball, it's gambling on gambling. It's just an example of how it's unchecked, unregulated and illegal. Sports betting is specifically prohibited in the Securities Exchange Act, so we're asking the federal agencies to enforce the laws which have molded and shaped its activity.

Given the amount of operators involved with prediction markets, how can these products expand in the US while remaining compliant with Tribal gaming compacts?

It's very simple for Tribes. They'll just say 'this is illegal, we don't have brakes for this, so you cannot engage on the reservation.' That's an exercise of Tribal sovereignty. We believe strongly in regulating because you don't know where the source of funding has come from. You don't have the ability. There is the ability to verify the age of your gamers, but who's going to check it? Who's going to validate it? Tribes, quite simply, are not going to allow it on their reservation.

At the national level, we have to ring that bell with our lawmakers and agencies and say 'this is illegal and unchecked. This is going to impact your respective economies.' It'll take away from sports betting, casinos, Tribal gaming and commercial properties. We have to educate folks on how this will impact their respective communities. When we talk to our federal lawmakers, we let them know that if you have sports betting in your state, you're not collecting any taxes, so there's going to be a bleed off of money from your state economy. There's no regulation; it's unchecked.

For Tribes, our revenue is 100% tax and we're going to defend our operations vigorously by not allowing it on our reservations. At some point, if Congress and other lawmakers finally recognize what we believe is true, or if they somehow pass it as being legal, hopefully there's a strong regulatory structure and then Tribes can explore that. But until then, we're not going to allow it on the reservations. I'll go back to the root system, establish a framework for regulating the industry or we're just not having it.

Are you able to preview the IGA conference in 2026 and how these matters could be addressed?

Absolutely. Knowledge is power and we're hoping to make sure we have a strong attendance. We always have a strong attendance when we're in San Diego, and the dates of our upcoming conference will be March 31 to April 3. We will be identifying prediction markets as the biggest threat to Indian gaming today. We're going to have a strong presence of operators and regulators to educate attendees because it is complex. It's a unique sector that requires specialized training and we can't afford to set that aside. We have a responsibility and we've done so through our team at IGA to shine a light on prediction markets. We're going to be talking about this ad nauseam until we come to some resolution.

I think the purpose of the IGA trade show is, one, to make sure Tribal operators see the newest and latest developments in the gaming industry, be it different systems, software, security, surveillance and any other service or good that's provided. And two, making sure we're up to date on current issues. We put out requests a few weeks back for panels and breakout sessions, so folks have been proposing those.

Another thing will be the continuation of Chairman's Ernie Stevens Jr's legacy. Strong regulation equals a strong and growing industry. We're going to have our commissioner training there - and we'll thank them for their investment in protecting Tribal sovereignty, protecting the Tribes, the operations and most importantly the integrity of the game. We'll also see a continuation of lifting up our women leaders, our matriarchs of Indian gaming. And e'll be honoring our veterans. These are all things that were important to the Chairman. They're important to Tribal leaders across the US.

You'll also be attending ICE in Barcelona; why is it important for IGA to continue developing an international presence as well as in the US?

This will be my first time going to ICE. I've heard the Chairman talk about the importance of telling our message, building bridges and bringing people together. There's a lot of advancements that take place in Europe and I think there are opportunities to bring those folks and their experience here to the US to share with Tribal operators. I'm really excited to tell our story. I understand Europeans are really fascinated with Native Americans and, in fact, they receive a different history than how US citizens are taught growing up. We get an opportunity to let them know their understanding is correct or your understanding is incorrect. But in the process of doing so, also talk about gaming and how we can create partnerships and expand the systems we have in place.

That's my expectation of attending ICE in Barcelona. Bringing back vendors and prospective associate members to IGA so we can grow our industry, continue growing our services, sending our kids off to school, ensuring our vets have safe, affordable housing and solid counseling. All these things the Federal Government has failed to live up to. That's why we fight so hard to protect ourselves in gaming. We want to make sure our vets have that counseling because the VA is failing them horribly. These are folks who put their lives on the line to protect the freedoms that we enjoy today. These are warriors.

Natives just inherently are warriors. We have the highest level of service in the military. I think this is a reflection of, if the Chairman were here, he would be doing this and he would have the exact same ideology. He might tell it a little more eloquently and have a more colorful story, but my expectation of going to ICE is to tell our story and encourage them to visit and work with Tribal communities. That's our goal and, again, it's a continuation of the Chairman's efforts.