CFTC Fines Former White House Teleprompter Operator $172K

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Friday ordered former White House teleprompter operator Gabriel Perez to pay a $172,539 penalty for illegally trading on prediction market platforms using advance access to Trump speech content. Under the settlement agreement with the CFTC, Perez must disgorge $107,539.02 in illegal profits and pay a $65,000 civil monetary penalty. He also agreed to a three-year trading ban and committed to ceasing and refraining from further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations. The CFTC noted that Perez traded Trump "mention market" contracts on the Kalshi platform between December 2025 and February 2026 while employed at the White House. These contracts are event contracts that pay out based on whether the President uses specific words or phrases in speeches.