alt Hacker NewsEDIT: see DannyBee's comment below ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49266746 ). It does look like the CFTC has extrapolated the "nationwide" out of either some novel interpretation of the filing or just entirely fabricated it as their justification for their action.
I've got no love for Kalshi, but "orders Kalshi to continue operate in New York" doesn't seem to be present anywhere in the actual release.
The article presents the sequence of events as:
1. The State of NY files a lawsuit against Kalshi under the theory that it can be regulated by state gambling laws.
2. The State of NY files for a temporary restraining order requiring Kalshi to halt trading nationally, not just in NY.
3. Kalshi reaches out to the CFTC to claim that NY doesn't have the authority to regulate interstate commerce.
4. The CFTC agrees and uses their authority to override the TRO.
That seems pretty aligned with how interstate commerce is regulated and managed in the US.
Replies
Your claim here is wrong:
> 2. The State of NY files for a temporary restraining order requiring Kalshi to halt trading nationally, not just in NY.
The State of New York did *NOT* file a temporary restraining order, neither in NY or nationally. Please find a citation of that if you want to claim it is true.
Rather the State of New York filed suit here to stop operations in New York:
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/governor-hochul-and-att...
Specifically the lawsuit asks for:
"Permanently enjoining Respondent and its principals, agents, and employees from operating an unlawful gambling business, or otherwise advancing gambling activity, or profiting from gambling activity, within or from New York or to persons in New York, without being licensed by the New York State Gaming Commission"
It seems that New York is asking the court for a temporary restraining order that would prohibit Kalshi from offering all event contracts nationwide. I also have zero love for Kalshi, but I can see why such a request would be concerning, regardless of whether I think Kalshi is a degenerate trash heap.
The most important lines to me are the CFTC Chairman's quote:
> These are financial exchanges that offer financial instruments and operate across state lines. They match the bid from a resident of one state with the offer of a resident from another state and submit the trade to a clearinghouse that backstops the transactions of customers throughout the country. New York has no business regulating these interstate financial markets.
If true, it seems quite irrelevant that NY is limiting its suit to NY customers. NY would be restricting trade to people in other states. (I am not a fan or user of Kalshi)
I think the point of confusion or obfuscation is that Kalshi is headquartered in NYC, so an order prohibiting them from offering bets/contracts "within or from New York" has the effect of prohibiting them nationwide. They could move to a friendlier state, but they presumably would rather not.
That is not true? The order was to stop them from operating in the state.
I think the question is whether or not this is damaging to the case that the Kalshi and others could be regulated state by state..
2 is false, actually.
If you read the complaint, the prayer for relief is quite clear that they only are trying to stop them from operating in new york, deliberately offering gambling to new yorkers, etc.
There is no relief requested nationwide.
What? It’s in the first paragraph.
> August 11, 2026
>
> WASHINGTON — The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today exercised its emergency authority in response to KalshiEX, LLC’s notification of a market emergency and ordered the exchange to continue to operate in accordance with the Commodity Exchange Act’s Core Principles.
I think it's good to have the official context from the state of NY as well, which argues that Kalshi meets the state's standards for gambling; has serially refused to get the required licenses, and serves customers aged 18-20 in a market where gambling is restricted by law to people over 21.
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/governor-hochul-and-att...
My impression was that NY wanted a TRO to stop Kalshi operating in New York, not nationally. A TRO seems like a rather extreme measure in that it assumes the plaintiffs win the lawsuit as a premise, but I guess that's partly a function of how long New York has been trying and failing to obtain compliance with its gaming laws, and intended to provoke a preliminary hearing into the merits of the case (vs letting the litigation drag on for years without anyhting changing).