CFTC investigates Adam Kinzinger over Kalshi trades tied to his own pardon

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is looking into prediction market trades made by former Congressman Adam Kinzinger on Kalshi, specifically contracts tied to whether he would receive a presidential pardon from Joe Biden. The trades occurred between December 2024 and January 2025, right before Biden issued a wave of preemptive pardons as he left office. Kinzinger, a former Republican member of the House January 6 committee who retired from Congress in 2023, says he walked away with a grand total of $823 in profit. He also says he had no insider knowledge and reviewed Kalshi’s trading rules before placing his bets. What Kinzinger actually traded The investigation centers on contracts Kinzinger purchased on Kalshi’s prediction market platform. One contract was directly tied to whether he himself would receive a pardon. Another was a broader market on Biden issuing preemptive pardons generally. During the relevant window, Kinzinger executed approximately 25 trades. Most of them lost money. The net $823 gain came from just a couple of winning positions. Biden did ultimately grant preemptive pardons to multiple individuals connected to the January 6 committee and other political ...