The CFTC just pulled the plug on Robinhood’s Super Bowl bets—Here’s why

Less than a day after launching Super Bowl Paris contracts, Robinhood closed them at the request of the CFTC.

February 4, Robin Terré the branch of its Paris Super Bowl Paris contracts one day after the launch, following a request from the Commitoy Futures Trading American Commission.

This decision comes as regulators are increasingly wary of commercial -based commercial products, in particular those related to major sporting events.

The product, launched in partnership with the prediction market platform KalshiHired users to bet on the outcome of the Super Bowl match on February 9 between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chiefs of Kansas City.

About only 1% of Robinhood customers had access to contracts before their suspension. Those who had already placed betting will be able to close their positions or see them through the regulations, but no new job will be authorized.

Robinhood, frustrated by the turn of events, said in a tweet that he had been in “regular communication” with the CFTC on his plans and was disappointed with the result.

The company did not disclose the exact reasoning behind the intervention of the CFTC, but the decision comes in the midst of a broader regulatory examination of contracts based on events.

Only two days ago, the agency spear A survey on Crypto.com and Kalshi, wondering if their own Super Bowl contracts were in accordance with derivative laws.

Robinhood is not new in trading based on events. In October 2024, the company do His first passage in space with contracts linked to the outcome of the American presidential election.

This launch follow up A court decision in favor of Kalshi, who had challenged CFTC’s attempts to block the electoral prediction markets.

The legal victory allowed Kalshi to continue to offer electoral contracts, but he did not do much to resolve the regulatory gray area surrounding the derivatives of events.

A spokesperson for the CFTC has strengthened his concerns, declaring that she “will exercise her supervisory authority as far as the extent” to ensure that companies comply with derivative laws, Reuters reported.

The agency examines carefully whether these products are part of traditional derivative rules or if they must be treated as a different class of financial instruments.

For Robinhood, this last obstacle may not mark the end of its thrust in space. The company indicated its intention to launch a larger event contract platform later this year, indicating that it still sees opportunities on the market.