A King County Superior Court judge has ordered Kalshi, the CFTC-licensed prediction market platform, to stop taking bets from Washington residents on sports, elections, politics, entertainment, culture, technology, science and so-called "mentions" contracts, with full compliance due by September 2.
Kalshi has not said publicly whether it will appeal further or seek a stay from a higher court before the deadlines hit.
McHale granted the preliminary injunction on July 21, rejecting Kalshi's argument that federal law preempted the state's authority to act, a decision KUOW reported found the platform had likely run an illegal gambling operation.
Kalshi can still pursue its underlying appeal of the injunction itself, but that process will play out on a slower track than the geofencing deadlines the state is enforcing now.
Arizona tried a different approach, filing criminal charges in March that were permanently blocked by a federal court, a reminder that Kalshi has not lost every round of this fight even as its state losses accumulate.
A Seattle judge finalized an injunction forcing the CFTC-licensed prediction market to geofence Washington users out of sports, election and 'mentions' contracts, part of a five-state legal fight over whether states can regulate event contracts at all.