An unusual scandal involving the use of insider information in the prediction market has erupted in the United States. According to ABC News, Donald Trump’s teleprompter operator, Gabriel Perez, earned more than $100,000 by placing bets on which words, topics, and phrases would appear in the U.S. president’s public speeches.
Federal regulators believe Perez used his official position for personal gain. Having worked with Trump since 2016, he had access to speech drafts before they were made public and frequently received the president’s final edits directly. According to investigators, this gave him the ability to make almost flawless predictions.
Over a three-month period, Perez placed bets on more than 12 Trump speeches, including his address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, his address to Congress, a prime-time speech, and a Medal of Honor ceremony. Investigators also claim that in some cases he modified or closed his positions during the speeches themselves when Trump deviated from the prepared text and skipped certain sections.
The suspicious activity was first detected by the prediction platform Kalshi, where users can place bets on various events, including whether specific words will be mentioned in public speeches. The company said its monitoring system quickly identified the suspicious trades and referred the information to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which launched an official investigation.
Following the publication of the investigation, the White House announced that Gabriel Perez had been placed on unpaid administrative leave. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Donald Trump personally reviewed the matter, called the incident “a disgrace,” and ordered the employee to be suspended without pay. The administration emphasized that White House staff are required to follow strict ethical standards and are prohibited from using non-public information for personal benefit.
According to sources, federal prosecutors declined to pursue criminal charges, but regulators are negotiating a settlement with Perez. Under the proposed agreement, he would return all profits earned and commit not to engage in similar trading activities in the future.
The case has already become one of the most widely discussed examples of the potential misuse of insider information in prediction markets. As these platforms continue to grow in popularity, U.S. authorities are increasing oversight of such trading activities, while companies are tightening their rules for users who have access to confidential information.
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