Light & Wonder’s head of government affairs has a rather pragmatic suggestion for breaking the prediction market deadlock that’s been tying up regulators, operators, and states: cut off the money flow.

Speaking at the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States conference, Howard Glaser argued that targeting payment processors could prove more effective than waiting for Supreme Court intervention or federal rulings to settle the increasingly bitter regulatory dispute between traditional gaming operators and upstart prediction market platforms like Kalshi.

Follow the Money

Glaser’s logic is straightforward. “You cannot run a prediction market if you can’t process the payments,” he told attendees. “If you can’t touch prediction market operators, get at the supporting ecosystem.”

The comment reflects broader frustration within the industry about how slowly federal resolution is moving. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is pushing ahead on its own authority despite having only one commissioner seated, and there’s no clear Supreme Court timeline in sight. This has some convinced that states have legitimate room to act independently.

“This is a free field for you,” Glaser told regulators. “I really believe it is the strongest possible action you could take while you wait for the Supreme Court.”

A Tested Playbook

The payment processor angle isn’t particularly new. Industry analyst Steve Ruddock noted that states have deployed similar strategies against sweepstakes casinos and offshore gambling operations, with some success. Payment providers tend to be remarkably risk-averse when it comes to gambling exposure. They’re natural pressure points.

What’s changed is the legitimacy of the tactic. Rather than being framed as an aggressive move by gaming incumbents protecting market share, Glaser positioned it as a measured regulatory response available to state authorities operating within their existing jurisdiction.

The Bigger Picture

Glaser also offered a sobering assessment of waiting for the courts. “We would be deluded to sit on our hands and wait for the Supreme Court,” he warned. “The barbarians would not be at the gate: They would be over the gate.”

That urgency reflects real market anxiety. Prediction markets are growing, legitimacy is spreading, and the longer regulatory uncertainty persists, the more entrenched these operators become. Some observers think the answer may ultimately come from the business side rather than the courtroom. Sportsbooks might develop their own prediction platforms to compete directly rather than litigate the issue away.

What the team thinks

Philippa Ashworth says:

Glaser’s payment processor angle is astute strategically, but it risks oversimplifying a fundamentally regulatory problem that won’t disappear through financial engineering alone. While cutting off funding might slow prediction market growth in the near term, it could equally trigger a fragmented ecosystem of decentralized payment solutions and international workarounds, ultimately creating more compliance headaches for operators rather than fewer. The real opportunity for L&W here lies in positioning itself as the industry architect of responsible innovation, working constructively with regulators on clear interstate frameworks rather than defaulting to the blunt instrument of financial isolation.