Former New York Republican Representative George Santos has agreed to a settlement of $35,000 with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) following an investigation into suspicious trades on the prediction marketplace Kalshi. The settlement includes a civil fine of $17,500 and the forfeiture of over $17,569 in profits from alleged insider trading related to his attendance at President Donald Trump's State of the Union speech in February.
Santos' attorney stated that the settlement should not be interpreted as an admission of wrongdoing, emphasizing that Santos chose to resolve the matter quickly rather than engage in lengthy litigation. The investigation was prompted after Santos publicly announced he would attend the State of the Union but subsequently did not attend, leading to significant profits from trades he made on the prediction market.
Kalshi confirmed that it flagged Santos' trades to the CFTC and announced plans to pursue its own enforcement action for violations of exchange rules. Santos, who faced various allegations during his congressional tenure, was expelled from the House in 2023 and later sentenced to prison for wire fraud and identity theft, although his sentence was commuted by Trump in 2025.