The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has moved to pause two micro-style sports prediction contracts — one from Novig and one from ProphetX — citing concerns that such products may be susceptible to market manipulation. According to Legal Sports Report, the CFTC placed a hold on Novig’s contract tied to which team scores the first basket in a basketball game, while separately pausing ProphetX’s so-called scorigami contract. Legal Sports Report also noted that the agency issued warning notices to both firms, flagging that the self-certified contracts may not satisfy requirements under the Commodity Exchange Act. Front Office Sports had the initial report on the pause request, according to Legal Sports Report.
Neither contract had been listed for trading when the CFTC acted. Legal Sports Report reported that ProphetX clarified it was asked to delay listing its scorigami contract rather than withdraw it entirely, and that no trading had taken place on either product. The CFTC, according to Legal Sports Report, identified manipulation exposure as a core concern with micro contracts of this type.
The agency’s intervention fits into a broader regulatory posture it has been developing around prediction markets. Legal Sports Report reported that the CFTC has continued working with registered entities on prediction market compliance, and that it previously issued an advisory raising the bar for such markets specifically because of manipulation risks. A separate advisory targeting incentive programs used by prediction market operators followed, according to Legal Sports Report — and Kalshi subsequently shut down its rewards program in response, Legal Sports Report reported. On October 9, 2026, the CFTC proposed a broader swap definition that would apply to event contracts connected to sports, politics, culture, and weather, Legal Sports Report noted.
The manipulation concerns echoed in the CFTC’s action have a parallel in how traditional sportsbooks have approached certain bet types. Legal Sports Report linked NBA betting restrictions on products like first-basket bets, opening-tip wagers, and select player-stat parlay combinations to gambling integrity cases involving Jontay Porter and Terry Rozier.
Originally reported by Legal Sports Report.
