The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) has defended its new Financial Services & Trading organizational membership subcategory, saying it was created to address consumer risk in products that may function similarly to gambling.
The statement follows questions from members and stakeholders after Kalshi became the first member in the category through a two-year, $2m investment in NCPG’s trader health and safety initiative.
NCPG said its role is focused on harm reduction rather than market classification, legality or licensing. The organization said current consumer-risk issues now extend beyond traditional gambling into sports betting, gaming, cryptocurrency, financial trading platforms and prediction markets.
Derek Longmeier, NCPG Board of Directors President and Heather L Maurer, NCPG Executive Director, said: “NCPG remains neutral regarding the legalization of gambling and does not advocate for or against the legality of specific products or platforms.”
They added: “Questions regarding legality, licensing and ongoing litigation are matters for regulators, lawmakers and the courts.”
The clarification comes during a period of regulatory uncertainty around prediction markets in the US. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has proposed rules for event contracts, while state regulators, tribal groups and gambling stakeholders continue to argue that some sports-related contracts resemble unlicensed wagering.
Kalshi, which is regulated by the CFTC, has also faced state-level challenges over whether its sports event contracts fall under federal derivatives law or state gambling law. The CFTC has argued that it has exclusive jurisdiction over event contract markets, including in actions involving state enforcement attempts.
Consumer-protection concerns have also grown alongside the sector. NCPG has said prediction market event contracts can carry gambling-related harm risks regardless of legal classification. Its recent polling with Harris found broad public support for gambling-style safeguards on prediction market platforms.
The new membership category therefore places NCPG in a contested area between financial regulation, gambling policy and responsible gambling advocacy. Its latest statement seeks to separate its public-health role from the legal debate surrounding prediction markets.
In May, Kalshi invested $2m in NCPG’s new initiative and became the organization’s first financial services and trading member.
NCPG says the subcategory is intended to support research, education, consumer protections and access to care for people affected by gambling-related harm
