CFTC Fines Former Congressman For Manipulative Trading
Mike Goodpaster Published 06/08/2026
Former Congressman George Santos was fined by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for manipulative prediction market trading involving the State of the Union Address. Santos was ordered by the federal regulator of prediction markets to pay a fine of $35,000. The ex-Congressman traded event contracts on the prediction market platform Kalshi that were based on whether he would be attending US President Donald Trump's State of the Union address to Congress earlier this year.
Santos was expelled from the House of Representatives in 2023. Federal lawmakers voted to remove Santos from his Congressional seat over criminal corruption charges and accusations that he had been misspending campaign money.
CFTC accuses Santos of misleading the public over his State of the Union appearance
Findings from the CFTC's investigation are that Santos issued misleading information regarding his appearance at the State of the Union (SOTU) address by President Trump. Santos took to social media leading up to the SOTU, discussing how he'd been invited by Trump to attend the President's speech.
Santos then made trades through the prediction market site Kalshi on his appearance at the SOTU. He took the side that he would not be attending. He's been accused of making false statements and that he was never invited to the speech by Trump. The CFTC alleges that Santos knew he wouldn't be attending and that his social media posts indicating that he would be in attendance he knew to be false statements.
The CFTC is ordering Santos to pay back the almost $18,000 he won by winning his trade on Kalshi. He will also be required to pay a fine of $17,500, adding up to a total payback of $35,000. Santos has also been assessed a three-year trading ban by the CFTC.
The lawyer for Santos insists that his client did no wrong
Even though he's agreed to pay his fine, Santos insists that he is innocent of all charges. He told NBC News he just wanted to "put the matter behind" him.
Backing up those comments was the response coming from Joseph Murray, the lawyer representing Santos.
“He chose a prompt, practical resolution, rather than protracted, costly litigation, and that choice should not be mistaken for admission of any wrongdoing, because it is not one,” Santos’ lawyer Joseph Murray said in a statement Santos shared on X.
Santos insisted that his plan all along was to attend the SOTU. Only inclement winter weather that was prohibiting travel across the Eastern Seaboard was preventing his arrival in Washington that day.
"Mr. Santos concealed neither his intention to attend, nor his change of plans to not attend ... from anyone," Murray said. "There was absolutely no intent to deceive any person nor intent to manipulate any market."
CFTC not the only organization investigating the former Congressman
The Department of Justice indicated it was not pursuing any charges against Santos over this incident. However, that doesn't mean he's free and clear once he pays his CFTC-issued fine.
Kalshi is undertaking its own investigation into Santos' actions. The prediction market site is pursuing its own enforcement action against the former Congressman for violations of exchange rules. Kalshi will also seek to reimburse anyone who lost money on the Santos SOTU trade.
"Earlier this year, Kalshi flagged trades by George Santos in connection with markets related to the State of the Union," Robert DeNault, Kalshi's enforcement director, said in a statement. "We investigated and quickly referred the matter to the CFTC, providing the evidence needed to secure an action against him."