Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway has issued cease-and-desist letters to six prediction market operators over sports event contracts offered to customers in the state. The action covers Polymarket, Kalshi, Crypto.com, Novig, Underdog and Robinhood.

Hanaway maintains that the sports contracts offered by the companies constitute sports wagering under Missouri law. Her office has directed the operators to stop offering those contracts to Missouri customers unless they obtain licenses from the Missouri Gaming Commission.

Each company received 30 days to comply with the state’s requirements. The action follows the launch of Missouri’s regulated sports betting market on December 1, 2025, after voters approved Amendment 2 in 2024. The framework placed sports wagering under Missouri Gaming Commission oversight and established a 21-year minimum age. Licensed sports betting also carries a 10% state tax.

“Missourians voted for a safe, well-regulated sports wagering market that supports public education and addresses problem gambling. Companies cannot repackage sports bets as ‘event contracts’ to avoid Missouri law. We will enforce the rules voters approved and protect consumers,” Hanaway said according to KCTV. “Any company that wants to offer sports wagering in Missouri must be licensed by the Missouri Gaming Commission, pay the required taxes and fees, and ensure no one under 21 can place a bet.”

Missouri Raises Licensing and Age Verification Issues

The Attorney General’s Office argues that prediction markets offering sports contracts must follow the same state framework that governs licensed sportsbooks. Hanaway also contends that federal law does not prevent Missouri from applying its gambling laws to these products.

Her office cited recent federal court decisions concerning the treatment of sports event contracts under the Commodity Exchange Act. Missouri’s position is that such contracts do not qualify as swaps that would remove them from state gambling oversight. Prediction market operators have challenged that interpretation in several jurisdictions.

Age controls form another part of Missouri’s case. State officials said Polymarket, Kalshi, Crypto.com, Underdog and Robinhood either allow younger users to access their products or lack sufficient measures to prevent Missouri residents under 21 from participating in sports wagering. The state’s statement did not include Novig in that specific group of five companies.

Hanaway warned that the state could take further action if the companies do not meet the cease-and-desist demands.

“Failure to comply will result in enforcement action by the State of Missouri,” Hanaway said Friday.

She has also acknowledged the possibility that the dispute could move into court.

“Chances are they may sue us once they get this cease-and-desist letter,” Hanaway said.

Operators Dispute Missouri’s Interpretation

Prediction market companies maintain that sports event contracts offered through federally regulated markets fall under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Commodity Exchange Act.

Robinhood said its contracts operate through a federally registered entity.

“Robinhood’s event contracts are federally regulated by the [Commodity Futures Trading Commission] and offered through Robinhood Derivatives, LLC, a CFTC-registered entity, allowing retail customers to access prediction markets in a safe, compliant, and regulated manner.”

Polymarket also disputed the state-level approach.

“Polymarket US maintains that prediction markets are regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission under a federal framework, not a patchwork of state rules.”

The disagreement reflects a wider legal dispute over whether federal commodities law prevents individual states from applying gambling regulations to sports prediction contracts. Recent federal appellate decisions have produced different outcomes depending on the jurisdiction and legal framework involved.

In August, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a case involving Nevada that Kalshi’s sports event contracts were likely not swaps under the Commodity Exchange Act, allowing Nevada to continue pursuing its gaming-law enforcement. The same appellate court later addressed contracts offered on California tribal lands and held that the tribes were likely to succeed in their argument that the products constituted Class III gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

Federal and State Disputes Continue

A different result emerged in litigation involving New Jersey. The Third Circuit ruled in April that the Commodity Exchange Act likely preempts New Jersey’s attempt to regulate Kalshi’s sports markets. New Jersey has since asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the dispute. Robinhood and Crypto.com have also sought Supreme Court involvement in related cases.

Missouri did not participate in the July letter in which attorneys general from 44 states challenged the CFTC’s authority over sports prediction markets. Its latest cease-and-desist action independently raises many of the same questions about where federal commodities oversight ends and state gambling authority applies.

For now, Missouri has given the six operators a defined compliance period. Hanaway’s office says companies that want to continue offering what the state regards as sports wagering must secure Missouri Gaming Commission licenses and follow the requirements established for the regulated market.

The companies challenging state oversight maintain that their event contracts belong within the federal CFTC framework. The competing positions leave Missouri’s enforcement action tied to a broader legal dispute already moving through federal courts across the United States.