WASHINGTON, March 17 (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic lawmakers Senator Chris Murphy and Representative Greg Casar on Tuesday introduced a bill to ban prediction market bets on military operations and other sensitive government actions, increasing pressure on the fast-growing markets.
The bill is one of several competing efforts on Capitol Hill to rein in prediction markets, after well-timed bets ahead of the U.S.-Israeli air strikes in Iran and Venezuela operations stoked concerns over the legality and ethics of such trades.
Here are some details:
The bill is called Banning Event Trading on Sensitive Operations and Federal Functions (BETS OFF) Act.
It would ban wagering on government actions, terrorism, war, assassination, and events where an individual knows or controls the outcome.
While the path for the bill to become law is uncertain, it ramps up congressional scrutiny of prediction markets. Democratic Representative Mike Levin and U.S. Senator Adam Schiff earlier this month introduced the DEATH BETS Act aimed at explicitly prohibiting any Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) registered entity from listing any contract that involves, relates to, or references terrorism, assassination, war, or an individual’s death.
The CFTC is also working on a regulatory framework for prediction markets.
Reporting by Michelle Price; Editing by Hugh Lawson
