Key Takeaways
- Gabriel Perez, who has managed Trump’s teleprompter since 2016, allegedly earned over $100,000 through Kalshi prediction markets by exploiting advance knowledge of presidential speeches.
- The trades focused on “Mentions” markets — betting contracts based on whether certain words or topics would be referenced in Trump’s addresses.
- Sources tell ABC News that Perez withdrew from positions during speeches when Trump departed from his prepared text.
- Kalshi’s internal monitoring systems detected suspicious activity and escalated the case to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
- Perez has been placed on administrative leave by the White House; Trump described the alleged actions as a “disgrace.”
Gabriel Perez has been responsible for operating President Donald Trump’s teleprompter since 2016. His position gives him advance access to Trump’s prepared remarks before they’re delivered publicly. New reporting from ABC News suggests he allegedly leveraged this privileged information for financial gain.
According to ABC News reporting on Thursday, Perez is currently in discussions with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission regarding accusations that he exploited nonpublic information about Trump’s speeches to place profitable bets on Kalshi, a federally regulated prediction market platform.
Kalshi offers “Mentions” markets where participants can wager on whether particular phrases or subjects will appear in public addresses. Perez allegedly placed bets across more than a dozen speeches spanning approximately three months. His trading activity included major events like Trump’s State of the Union address and his January appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Reports indicate his total profits exceeded $100,000.
The Trading Strategy Explained
With direct access to Trump’s scripted text, Perez would have known in advance which words the president was scheduled to deliver. Trump frequently deviates from prepared remarks — a well-documented pattern. Perez allegedly capitalized on these moments by modifying his betting positions in real time, exiting trades during speeches when Trump skipped over scripted sections.
Kalshi identified the suspicious trading patterns through its compliance and surveillance infrastructure. The platform promptly flagged the transactions and notified the CFTC. When asked for comment, a CFTC representative stated the agency “can’t confirm or deny an investigation.”
Following the news report, the White House suspended Perez and placed him on administrative leave. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt revealed that Trump characterized the alleged conduct as “deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace.”
Insider Trading Concerns Mount Across Prediction Platforms
This incident emerges during heightened regulatory attention on potential insider trading within prediction markets.
Just two months ago in January, federal authorities charged a U.S. Army soldier with exploiting classified information to place a $400,000 wager on Polymarket concerning Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. In May, prosecutors charged a Google software engineer with leveraging internal company search analytics to generate $1.2 million in profits on Polymarket.
Additionally, six Polymarket users collectively earned approximately $1 million earlier this year by betting on U.S. military strikes against Iran before the end of February — placing their wagers just hours before explosions were reported in Tehran.
Congress has begun taking action. Republican Representative Bryan Steil proposed legislation in June that would prohibit members of Congress and their immediate family members from participating in prediction markets tied to political events. The Senate has implemented its own prohibition on such trading.
Both Kalshi and Polymarket claim they’ve implemented safeguards designed to detect and prevent insider trading. The Perez investigation will serve as another critical evaluation of whether these enforcement mechanisms are effective.
