Some deposits were delayed due to high traffic, though Kalshi reassured users that funds were safe and on the way.

Prediction markets monetize trading fees rather than a house edge, positioning Kalshi and Polymarket as alternatives to traditional casinos or sportsbooks.

Critics flag market manipulation and insider-trading risks; in response, Kalshi expanded surveillance and enforcement ahead of the Super Bowl, including a new independent surveillance-audit committee and tougher enforcement measures.

Kalshi’s leadership frames the business as aligned with customers’ success, with the ethos that the company wins when its users win.

Before the game, Kalshi reported conducting over 200 investigations and freezing accounts as part of active cases referred to law enforcement.

Beyond the game itself, traders speculated on a wide range of event outcomes—from audience viewership to which celebrities would attend and who would perform at halftime.

Analysts estimate that Kalshi and Polymarket together drew roughly $1.2 billion in trading on Sunday tied to the Super Bowl, with Kalshi alone reporting a daily trading-volume record surpassing $1 billion.

Kalshi announced that it registered over $1 billion in Super Bowl trades, signaling a surge in activity on prediction markets during the event.

These platforms operate under the oversight of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a framework established after the Supreme Court allowed sports betting in 2018.

Not all trades were profitable; at least one trader lost about $100,000, highlighting the volatility and risk inherent in prediction markets and concerns about information efficiency.

The reporting underscores a surge in event-driven prediction market activity around a major sporting event, reflecting heightened trader interest in binary and probabilistic bets linked to the game.

Prediction markets are expanding into events like the Grammys and Oscars, with Kalshi naming NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo as a shareholder.