NBA names Kalshi and Polymarket its preferred exchanges

The NBA has become the latest major US league to partner directly with prediction markets. In a release dated New York, 26 October 2026, the league named Kalshi and Polymarket its "Preferred Prediction Market Exchanges" and announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on cooperation and information sharing about NBA-related prediction markets.

Prediction markets let users buy and sell contracts that pay out depending on whether an event happens, such as a team winning a game. In the US they are run as exchanges under the CFTC, the federal regulator for derivatives. Several states disagree and argue that sports contracts are sports betting that they should regulate, CNBC notes. That dispute is still open, and the NBA's deal does not settle it.

What the integrity terms cover

According to the NBA, the agreements with Kalshi and Polymarket include three main protections:

• "limitations on permissible markets", meaning the league can restrict which NBA contracts are offered;
• "affirmative prohibitions on trading NBA event contracts by league and team personnel";
• "information-sharing obligations relating to investigations and suspicious trading".

The release adds that every "Authorized Prediction Market Operator" partnership will carry integrity obligations specific to prediction markets and market restrictions "aligned with the NBA's latest sports betting restrictions". That points to the league's recent memo to partner sportsbooks, which cut opening-tip bets and same-player under parlays.

Kalshi says, in its own post, that it already works with IC360 to spot suspicious trading and identify people barred from trading, with Signify against online abuse, and with IC360's SelfExclude programme so users can exclude themselves across participating platforms with one enrolment. Those are Kalshi's descriptions of its own safeguards.

What the exchanges and DraftKings get

As preferred exchanges, Kalshi and Polymarket receive "rights to use NBA IP, marketing rights and promotional activations across media channels within the United States", according to the release. They will also get official NBA data from Sportradar, the league's "Official Data Distribution Partner", to operate and settle authorized NBA markets. Settlement is the point where a contract is paid out, so official data decides which result counts.

The league has also expanded its agreement with DraftKings "to include prediction markets and nationwide promotion", and plans to extend its relationships with other official sports betting partners "and others in the industry" in the coming weeks. It named no further companies and gave no date. Sports Business Journal (SBJ) reports that talks to add prediction rights to the FanDuel deal are under way and that expanded deals with other operators, including Fanatics, are expected to follow.

Financial terms were not published; according to SBJ, neither the league nor the exchanges would discuss them. With this deal the NBA joins the NHL and MLB, which already work directly with prediction-market companies, while the NFL remains the major holdout, CNBC reports.

What the deal does not do

The MOU sets up cooperation and information sharing with the CFTC. It does not give the NBA or either exchange a state gambling licence, and it does not change how states treat these products.

It also does not raise the trading age. According to SBJ, the league asked for a minimum age of 21, but the MOU does not grant that, and Kalshi and Polymarket resisted the change. SBJ quotes the NBA's Scott Kaufman-Ross as saying the two exchanges agreed instead to enhanced responsible-gambling measures and monitoring for account holders under 21. SBJ adds that the league will keep pressing the CFTC for a higher age limit.

In our reading, the deal follows the playbook the NBA used with sportsbooks: accept a market it cannot stop, then use commercial contracts to win the data, monitoring and market limits it wants. What it cannot buy through a sponsorship is the answer to who regulates these products. That still sits with the CFTC, the states and the courts. For background on the federal side, see our story on the CFTC's view of casino and sportsbook wagers versus event contracts, and on US lawmakers' letters to operators including Kalshi and Polymarket.

What they said

"Protecting the integrity of the game is our top priority," said Scott Kaufman-Ross, NBA Head of Media Distribution & Partnerships, in the release. "As this category develops, we believe it is important to work constructively with regulators and operators to help ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place."

Adam Barrick, Head of Sports Partnerships at Kalshi, called the partnership "a significant milestone". Ari Borod, President, Sports Business Development at Polymarket, said: "We look forward to partnering with the NBA on establishing a safe, transparent prediction market ecosystem for everyone."

Prediction markets carry the same risk of losing money as betting. If it stops feeling like entertainment, use self-exclusion tools and local support services.