From the HERE City State Desk
Coinbase has agreed to stop offering sports-related event contracts to customers in Michigan, the latest prediction-market platform to step back as the state treats those products as unlicensed sports betting.
Under an agreement announced Wednesday by the Michigan Gaming Control Board, Coinbase Financial Markets will stop offering new sports-related event contracts by 12:00 a.m. Eastern time on Oct. 10, 2026, and close out any open customer positions by the same deadline. That includes contracts traded on KalshiEX and other designated contract markets.
In exchange, the state agreed not to take enforcement action against Coinbase as long as the company stays in compliance while related appeals continue before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. A court denied Coinbase a preliminary injunction in August 2026, and its appeal has been paused while appeals involving Robinhood, Polymarket and Kalshi play out.
The deal does not settle the larger legal fight. Coinbase and Kalshi argue the contracts are federally regulated financial products overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Michigan officials say contracts tied to sports outcomes fall under state gambling law and cannot be offered without meeting the state sports betting rules.
Robinhood recently reached a nearly identical agreement, and Kalshi was blocked in September by a state-court preliminary injunction. Gaming board Executive Director Henry Williams said operators are pulling back because they face significant legal consequences in Michigan.