Massachusetts subpoenas Robinhood over sports prediction markets

Published

4 months ago

March 25, 2025

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Massachusetts subpoenas Robinhood over sports prediction markets

Massachusetts’ securities regulator has reportedly launched a probe over Robinhood’s prediction markets offering that has allowed users to bet on the outcomes for a slew of events, including basketball tournaments.

Reuters reported on March 24 that Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin said his office subpoenaed Robinhood last week to get information on its marketing materials and the number of Massachusetts-based users that traded sports events contracts on college basketball tournaments.

Galvin said he was concerned the trading platform was “linking a gambling event on a popular sports event that’s especially popular to young people to a brokerage account.”

“This is just another gimmick from a company that’s very good at gimmicks to lure investors away from sound investing,” he added.

Robinhood launched a prediction markets hub on March 17 that would be initially available through the Commodity Futures Trading Commission-regulated prediction platform Kalshi and would feature event contracts on college basketball tournaments and the May federal funds rate.

A Robinhood spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the event contracts “are regulated by the CFTC and offered through CFTC-registered entities.”

“Prediction markets have become increasingly relevant for retail and institutional investors alike, and we’re proud to be one of the first platforms to offer these products to retail customers in a safe and regulated manner,” the spokesperson said.

Robinhood Markets (HOOD) share price remained relatively flat after the close of trading on March 24 after an over 9% jump over the day to close at $48.36, according to Google Finance.

The CFTC and Galvin’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Event contracts are agreements that allow users to bet on the outcome of essentially anything, from sports games to election outcomes and the price of cryptocurrencies.

They were popularized on the blockchain-based prediction market Polymarket and non-decentralized rival Kalshi and have caught the ire of some regulators.

Last month, Robinhood scrapped event contracts allowing for bets on the Super Bowl a day after launching the products after the CFTC asked it to.

The Massachusetts probe also requested Robinhood hand over internal communications about the decision to roll out the recent college basketball events contracts after the CFTC’s request to stop the Super Bowl contracts.

The CFTC also reportedly asked Kalshi and Crypto.com early last month to explain how both of their Super Bowl event contracts complied with derivatives regulations.

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Politics

Jingye and Whitehall officials hold talks over British Steel future

Published

3 hours ago

July 9, 2025

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Jingye and Whitehall officials hold talks over British Steel future

The Chinese owner of British Steel has held fresh talks with government officials in a bid to break the impasse over ministers’ determination not to compensate it for seizing control of the company.

Sky News has learnt that executives from Jingye Group met senior civil servants from the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) late last week to discuss ways to resolve the standoff.

Whitehall sources said the talks had been cordial, but that no meaningful progress had been made towards a resolution.

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Jingye wants the government to agree to pay it hundreds of millions of pounds for taking control of British Steel in April – a move triggered by the Chinese group’s preparations for the permanent closure of its blast furnaces in Scunthorpe.

Such a move would have cost thousands of jobs and ended Britain’s centuries-old ability to produce virgin steel.

Jingye had been in talks for months to seek £1bn in state aid to facilitate the Scunthorpe plant’s transition to greener steelmaking, but was offered just half that sum by ministers.

British Steel has not yet been formally nationalised, although that remains a probable outcome.

Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, has previously dismissed the idea of compensating Jingye, saying British Steel’s equity was essentially worthless.

Last month, he met his Chinese counterpart, where the issue of British Steel was discussed between the two governments in person for the first time.

Jingye has hired the leading City law firm Linklaters to explore the recovery of hundreds of millions of pounds it invested in the Scunthorpe-based company before the government seized control of it.

News of last week’s meeting comes as British steelmakers face an anxious wait to learn whether their exports to the US face swingeing tariffs as part of US President Donald Trump’s trade war.

Sky News’s economics and data editor, Ed Conway, revealed this week that the UK would miss a White House-imposed deadline to agree a trade deal on steel and aluminium this week.

Jingye declined to comment, while a spokesman for the Department for Business and Trade said: “We acted quickly to ensure the continued operations of the blast furnaces but recognise that securing British Steel’s long-term future requires private sector investment.

“We have not nationalised British Steel and are working closely with Jingye on options for the future, and we will continue work on determining the best long-term sustainable future for the site.”