Teleprompter operator accused of winning about $100,000 on bets on content of Trump's speeches
Gabriel Perez bet on specific words being uttered in the US President's speeches.
Regulators and the American prediction platform Kalshi are investigating the actions of Gabriel Perez, who allegedly earned almost $100,000 by using insider information he had access to as a teleprompter operator in the White House, writes the BBC.
Perez worked in the White House since 2016. He is alleged to have placed bets that specific words would be spoken in President Donald Trump's speeches.
He placed these bets on Kalshi, a popular prediction platform in the US. Users of the service can bet on certain events happening. The company reported Perez's actions to the regulator — the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Perez's Kalshi account was reportedly frozen, and he did not manage to collect his winnings. The account held $90,000.
The company told the BBC that in March, its analysts noticed unusual bets on "mention markets" — contracts where users predict that a speaker will use specific words, such as country names, economic terms, or election slogans.
"The words of political leaders, such as presidents or Federal Reserve chairmen, trigger movements in currency markets, the oil futures market, and stock markets worth billions of dollars," Kalshi noted.
After the company noticed unusual bets, it checked the user's profile and discovered that he was a federal employee with access to teleprompters.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president was aware of this employee; he was placed on unpaid leave and will no longer work in the White House.
The Federal Prosecutor's Office in Manhattan declined to initiate criminal proceedings against Perez.
Now reading
Ukraine for the first time responded to Russian attacks on "Nova Poshta" warehouses with symmetrical strikes on "Wildberries" hubs. The one near Moscow burned to the ground 55
Ukraine for the first time responded to Russian attacks on "Nova Poshta" warehouses with symmetrical strikes on "Wildberries" hubs. The one near Moscow burned to the ground 5
A grandmother with little money was treated contemptuously in a cafe — a Minsk resident paid for her lunch. "Panski Dranik" has its own version of events 2828
A grandmother with little money was treated contemptuously in a cafe — a Minsk resident paid for her lunch. "Panski Dranik" has its own version of events 28
Belarus is no longer just about political prisoners. What Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya brought to one of the main security forums in the USA and what Siarhei Tsikhanouski was doing there 2121
Comments