CFTC
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal regulator for derivatives markets including event contracts on platforms like Kalshi.
Definition
The CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) is the US federal agency that regulates futures, options, and swaps markets. It also oversees event contracts, which are binary contracts on real-world outcomes. Platforms must obtain a CFTC Designated Contract Market (DCM) license to legally offer event contracts to US retail traders.
In practice
Kalshi holds a CFTC DCM license, which means its contracts are legally structured as futures and fall squarely within the CFTC's jurisdiction. Polymarket, being a decentralized protocol on Polygon, operates outside CFTC registration. For US-based algorithmic traders, this distinction matters: trading on a non-registered platform may carry legal risk, whereas a regulated DCM like Kalshi offers a compliant alternative with defined position limits and reporting requirements.