The House Oversight Committee's insider trading investigation into Kalshi and Polymarket affects Robinhood and Coinbase, while the SEC approves Nasdaq to launch cash-settled Bitcoin index options on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange

According to BBX data, the pressure from market regulation suddenly intensified over the weekend, and institutional-level crypto derivatives product lines expanded simultaneously. The core dynamics are as follows:

• On May 22, James Comer (Republican, Kentucky), Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, officially issued investigation letters to Kalshi (privately held) and Polymarket (privately held), initiating a formal congressional investigation into insider trading on prediction market platforms. The investigation focuses on two suspicious bets: one betting on the early capture of Venezuelan President Maduro, and another betting on the direction of the Iranian conflict. Both transactions recorded unusually large amounts just hours before the related events were made public. According to media reports, the Wisconsin Attorney General has recently listed Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ: $HOOD), along with Kalshi, Polymarket, and Crypto.com, as defendants, accusing them of providing unlicensed sports betting services in Wisconsin. This is the latest escalation of the prediction market facing legal challenges in 13 states to congressional scrutiny. Both Kalshi and Polymarket stated their willingness to cooperate with the committee's investigation, asserting that their platforms have robust anti-insider trading mechanisms.

• On May 23, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) officially approved a proposal submitted by Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ: $NDAQ) to launch cash-settled Bitcoin index options on its Philadelphia Stock Exchange, which does not involve physical delivery of Bitcoin. This product will allow institutional investors to hedge or invest in Bitcoin price fluctuations through standardized options contracts, filling a market gap for cash-settled Bitcoin index derivatives on regulated exchanges in the U.S. The timing of the approval coincided with significant fluctuations in Bitcoin over the week (with a low of $74,500 and a high rebound to $77,800), reflecting the accelerating release of genuine demand for volatility management tools in the market.

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