The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has ordered former White House teleprompter operator Gabriel Perez to pay more than $172,000 and accept a three-year trading ban for using nonpublic information from President Donald Trump’s speeches to trade event contracts on the prediction market platform Kalshi.

Under the settlement announced Friday, Perez must disgorge $107,539.02 in trading profits and pay a $65,000 civil monetary penalty. He also agreed to cease and desist from further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations. The civil penalty was substantially reduced because of what the agency described as Perez’s exemplary cooperation with the investigation.

How the Trades Worked

Perez served as a technical advisor and teleprompter operator for the White House, a role he held since 2016. In that position he had access to the text of presidential speeches before they were delivered. Between December 2025 and February 2026 he traded presidential “mention market” contracts on Kalshi. These event contracts pay out based on whether specific words or phrases appear in public remarks by the president.

According to the CFTC order, Perez traded in 14 such markets and was profitable on 39 of 43 contracts. He generated $107,539.02 in gains by placing the trades after reviewing the prepared remarks, typically about an hour before delivery, and before the information became public.

Perez consented to the order without admitting or denying the findings. He is no longer employed by the federal government. He had been placed on unpaid administrative leave earlier in the year after the allegations surfaced.

Kalshi’s Role and Enforcement Warning

Kalshi’s surveillance systems first flagged unusual activity in the mention markets. The exchange conducted an internal investigation, froze the relevant account, and referred the matter to the CFTC. The agency publicly credited KalshiEX for its assistance.

Robert DeNault, Kalshi’s head of enforcement, issued a public statement following the order.

The case marks the CFTC’s second settlement involving event-contract trading on Kalshi in roughly four weeks. In July the agency resolved a separate matter with former congressman George Santos that involved smaller profits and a comparable three-year trading ban.

Broader Context for Prediction Markets

Mention markets allow participants to take positions on the specific language public figures will use at events ranging from the State of the Union address to rallies and ceremonial speeches. Regulators have increased scrutiny of how these markets handle nonpublic information as trading volume has grown.

The CFTC noted that Perez’s penalty reflected a discount under its cooperation policy. Although he did not self-report, he later sat for a voluntary interview and accepted responsibility, which the agency cited as the basis for the reduced civil monetary penalty.

Perez remains barred from trading on any CFTC-registered entity for three years. The settlement resolves the civil charges without further litigation.