Kalshi investigating suspicious bets tied to White house press secretary pick: Report

Prediction market Kalshi has opened an investigation into suspicious bets related to President Trump’s selection of his next press secretary , The Wall Street Journal reported.

The company said that it was looking into at least three trades placed on its platform shortly before news outlets began announcing the appointment of Katie Zacharia to the White House press secretary role around 2 p.m., according to the outlet.

Before Trump’s announcement on Friday, Zacharia was considered as having a one percent chance of being selected for this role.

One $19 bet on her appointment was placed on Thursday evening, which is expected to pay out $1,896. Two other bets of around $74 and $80 were placed at 1:41 p.m. on Friday and are expected to pay out $3,689 and $4,023, respectively.

Zacharia will succeed former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who left the role earlier this year after having a child, and is now a commentator for Fox News.

She is a conservative political commentator and a communications adviser to the president’s media company. Zacharia previously served a brief stint as a spokesperson and deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security.

Trump praised Zacharia as a “devoted fan and member of MAGA” in a Truth Social post announcing her appointment.

“I am confident that Katie will deliver strong results for our Country as the next White House Press Secretary, as she has the respect of, and will work fantastically with, the Media, the American People, and my Administration,” the president continued.

In July, Trump’s teleprompter operator, Gabriel Perez, was removed from his role after he garnered over $100,000 in profits on Kalshi bets he placed on the president’s speeches. Perez was fined $172,000 by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

When asked about the investigation, the White House told The Hill to refer to the president’s Friday Truth Social post on Zacharia.

The Hill has reached out to Kalshi for comment.