Politics · United States · 23 hrs ago
Kalshi examines small bets that predicted Zacharia’s press secretary appointment
Kalshi is examining three small bets that correctly predicted Katie Zacharia would become the next White House press secretary.
Each bet was under $100, and the trades could bring payouts worth thousands of dollars.
Before the news, Kalshi put Zacharia’s chances of getting the job at 1%.
President Donald Trump named Zacharia to the role, replacing Karoline Leavitt.
Zacharia had worked as a senior communications adviser for Truth Social and its parent company, Trump Media & Technology Group.
The bets have drawn attention because some prediction markets concern decisions that may be known to people before they become public, raising concerns about possible insider trading.
Kalshi says it uses surveillance tools to examine unusual market activity, and the company is taking a closer look at these trades.
Kalshi is examining three small bets that correctly predicted Katie Zacharia would become the White House press secretary.
The bets were placed when Zacharia had a 1% likelihood of being selected on the platform.
The trades were each under $100, and one was for $19; together, they could produce thousands of dollars in payouts.
Zacharia’s appointment was announced on Friday, with the timing of two bets shortly before the news drawing scrutiny.
Kalshi has previously said it uses surveillance tools to examine unexpected market activity, but the company declined to comment to CNN.
- Who
- Kalshi is examining bets made by unidentified users predicting Katie Zacharia’s selection.
- What
- Three small bets correctly predicted Zacharia’s appointment as White House press secretary.
- When
- The bets were placed on Thursday night and Friday afternoon; the appointment was announced Friday.
- Where
- On Kalshi, a prediction market platform.
- Why
- The bets drew scrutiny because Zacharia had a 1% likelihood on the platform, and two bets were placed shortly before the appointment news.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Insider information is often timely
There’s a small window someone can bet. Not every American has $10,000 in a bank account that they can put on Kalshi within a few hours before the prices change.
I am confident that Katie will deliver strong results for our Country as the next White House Press Secretary, as she has the respect of, and will work fantastically with, the Media, the American People, and my Administration
A $19 bet was placed predicting Zacharia’s appointment, according to TheWrap.
Bets of $74 and $80 were placed, according to TheWrap.
News of Zacharia’s appointment broke, according to TheWrap.
Trump confirmed on Truth Social that Zacharia would join his staff.
- Number of bets
- Three
- Bet sizes
- $19, $74 and $80
- Platform likelihood
- 1% for Zacharia to be named press secretary
- Potential payout on $19 bet
- $1,896
- Potential payouts on $74 and $80 bets
- $3,689 and $4,023 respectively
Sources
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