A new U.S. Senate bill seeks to ban betting markets tied to war, assassination, terrorism, or an individual’s death, a move that could affect prediction-market platforms like Polymarket.
The legislation, introduced by Senator Adam Schiff, is called the DEATH BETS Act (Discouraging Exploitative Assassination, Tragedy, and Harm Betting in Event Trading Systems Act). It would amend the Commodity Exchange Act to stop exchanges from listing or clearing contracts related to violent or tragic events, giving regulators clearer authority to block them.
Prediction markets, including Polymarket and Kalshi, allow users to speculate on elections, geopolitical events, and other real-world outcomes. The new bill could tighten oversight and influence how these platforms design contracts in the future, particularly those tied to catastrophic or violent events.
The DEATH BETS Act comes amid growing ethical concerns about betting on tragedies or acts of violence. Polymarket recently faced criticism over a market tied to the possibility of a nuclear strike and subsequently archived the market, showing how sensitive such event contracts have become.
The bill has been referred to a Senate committee for review, and it’s still uncertain whether it will move forward in Congress.
