Representatives Mike Levin (CA-49) and Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) unveiled new bicameral legislation, the DEATH BETS Act, aimed at preventing any Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) registered entity from listing contracts connected to terrorism, assassination, war, or individual deaths. The bill seeks to close existing loopholes in federal law that allow traders to profit from the timing of violent events or military actions.
Levin and Schiff Introduce Legislation to Ban Death and War Betting
“Betting on war and death should be illegal. While federal law prohibits prediction market contracts on terrorism, war, and assassination, there are still gaping holes that allow traders to profit off death. The result is a system with nothing standing between a prediction market and a contract that lets someone make money off the outbreak of war or the deaths of American service members. We already saw what that looks like: over half a billion dollars was wagered on the timing of U.S. military strikes on Iran alone. That is unacceptable, and this legislation puts a stop to it,”Rep. Levin said.
Senator Schiff emphasized the national security risks and ethical concerns tied to such contracts. “Betting on war and death creates an environment in which insiders can profit off of classified information, our national security is jeopardized, and violence is encouraged. There is no justification for gambling on lives, or public benefit to be derived by such a market. With regulators turning a blind eye, prediction markets have rapidly become the Wild West. As the CFTC seeks to rewrite the rules of the road, Congress must make clear that these death bets are unequivocally prohibited, and this bill would do just that.”
Closing Loopholes in Federal Oversight
Currently, the CFTC has the authority to bar contracts on war, terrorism, and assassination if it determines they are contrary to the public interest. Under the DEATH BETS Act, that discretion would be removed. The bill would codify a strict ban on all prediction market contracts tied to death, war, assassination, or terrorism, including contracts that could be interpreted to correlate with an individual’s death—protections not explicitly referenced in the Commodity Exchange Act.
The legislation responds to high-profile incidents on both domestic and offshore platforms. Platforms have previously listed contracts on whether Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei would be “out as Supreme Leader,” which reached $54 million in trading volume on Kalshi before it was paused. Rep. Levin has also raised concerns about offshore contracts speculating on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro’s removal from power and the capture of the Ukrainian town of Myrnohad by Russian forces.
By establishing a clear, enforceable prohibition, the DEATH BETS Act aims to prevent traders from profiting from human tragedy and to remove regulatory ambiguity from prediction markets. The bill would ensure that contracts exploiting war, death, and terrorism cannot be offered to the public, closing loopholes that have allowed “death contracts” to exist.
If enacted, the legislation would reinforce ethical standards in financial markets, protecting national security and public interest from exploitative speculation, and removing the potential for insider advantage in sensitive events.
Source:
“Rep. Levin & Sen. Schiff Introduce New Bicameral Legislation to Explicitly Ban Death & War Prediction Contracts”, levin.house.gov, March 10, 2026
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