Half of Ohio's targeted prediction market companies comply with cease-and-desist orders

The Ohio Casino Control Commission has secured compliance from half of the ten prediction market operators it ordered to stop offering sports event contracts in the state. Four companies, Robinhood, Gemini, Moomoo Financial and Coinbase, have agreed to cease operations, joining Plus500US which complied earlier. The commission issued the cease-and-desist orders on October 2, giving the firms until October 16 to confirm they would stop. Two other operators, Underdog and Polymarket, have responded by filing lawsuits against the state.

Three companies, Novig, ProphetX and Webull, remain in discussions with the OCCC. The regulator confirmed that Robinhood, Gemini and Moomoo Financial have already stopped offering new sports event contracts to Ohio customers. Coinbase has agreed to halt its offerings by November 13. The OCCC warned that companies ignoring its orders could face administrative, civil or criminal action, along with financial penalties tied to revenue generated from Ohio customers.

Polymarket's lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of Ohio's sports betting licensing framework. The company argues that its physical-presence and in-state server requirements unlawfully discriminate against interstate commerce. This legal action adds a new dimension to the growing dispute between prediction markets and state regulators. The enforcement push followed a September ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit against another prediction market, Kalshi.

The appellate court ruled that Kalshi's sports-event contracts are not swaps under federal commodities law. The panel also found that even if they were, federal law would neither expressly nor impliedly preempt state gambling laws. Kalshi was not among the ten companies that received the October cease-and-desist orders because it was already involved in separate litigation with Ohio. Beyond the prediction platforms themselves, the OCCC has also warned licensed gaming operators and suppliers in the state. In an October 20 letter, the commission warned that supporting unlicensed prediction markets could jeopardize their gaming licenses. The regulator identified prohibited support services including market making, liquidity provision, integrity monitoring, data security and other technology-related support. The OCCC ordered all licensees to immediately stop supporting prediction market platforms offering sports event contracts and to confirm compliance by October 30. The commission told Legal Sports Report that several licensees met this deadline, but others have not yet confirmed compliance. The regulator said it plans to follow up with those licensees, though it did not specify which companies have complied.