# Sports predictions are gambling, CME chief says, urging crypto to focus on efficiency

By Riza Dagoc

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/insights/52415
Published: 2026-11-09T16:20:32.000Z
Updated: 2026-11-09T16:20:32.000Z
Section: Insights & Views

> CME chief Terrence Duffy called sports prediction products gambling and questioned regulatory scrutiny, urging crypto to focus on tokenization and market efficiency.

Cryptocurrency should concentrate on tokenization and more efficient markets, distancing itself from prediction products that can undermine confidence, according to CME Group chairman and CEO Terrence Duffy.

In a CoinDesk interview on November 9, Duffy questioned the integrity of some prediction markets and the scrutiny they receive from regulators. He argued that cryptocurrency’s practical applications should be considered separately from the regulation of event betting.

“Sports predictions are gambling,” Duffy said. He cited wagers on whether LeBron James would collect two or three rebounds, arguing that such outcomes have no economic impact on the people placing the bets. He also warned that these contracts could be vulnerable to manipulation.

Duffy challenged descriptions of political prediction markets as “truth machines.” Citing the Wisconsin gubernatorial primary, he said prediction markets had followed pollsters. If their participants draw on the same broadcasts, podcasts and streaming services as everyone else, he argued, the source of their supposed informational advantage deserves scrutiny.

He also questioned regulatory oversight, saying 4,000 applications had been submitted to the CFTC since the start of the second Trump administration, with none denied or stayed. He pointed to contracts on whether someone would attend an event, where that person could potentially bet and then control the outcome, as an example of products that weaken market credibility.

For Duffy, cryptocurrency’s potential lies in reducing market friction. He said CME’s margin efficiencies across products now free up more than $100 billion in participant capital each day, compared with $3 billion to $4 billion a day 10 years ago. He views tokenization, digitization and associated cryptocurrencies as ways to extend those efficiencies.

When assessing new cryptocurrency products, CME examines underlying liquidity, the reliability of pricing indexes and its clearinghouse’s ability to manage risk, Duffy said. Its cryptocurrency products are currently cash settled, without physical delivery or custody of the assets. He nevertheless acknowledged that physical delivery could improve price discovery.

Duffy described the decision to introduce Bitcoin futures as a judgment about timing and manageable risk. Higher margin requirements and traditional financial safeguards could restrict participation by smaller investors, he said, but helped create conditions in which institutions were willing to participate.

He expressed disappointment that cryptocurrency adoption remains concentrated and said broader use would require time and education. His preferred direction is wider practical adoption that improves capital efficiency, with prediction markets and their regulation addressed separately.