(CNN) — The federal agency that regulates prediction markets is investigating President Donald Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator for potential insider trading, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
The sources said White House employee Gabriel Perez made trades on the prediction site Kalshi that were flagged for possible insider activity. The trades were on “mention markets,” where users can bet on which words and phrases that public figures, including Trump, will say at speeches and events.
Kalshi referred its findings to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal agency that regulates prediction markets. One of the sources said Perez made more than $90,000 in profits from the trades in question, but the profits have been frozen.
“Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC, and we are cooperating and assisting regulators,” Kalshi’s head of enforcement, Robert DeNault, said in a statement.
Perez has cooperated with the CFTC investigation, according to one of the sources.
CNN has reached out to the White House, the CFTC and Perez for comment. In response to CNN’s inquiries, a CFTC spokesperson said the agency “can’t confirm or deny an investigation.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday that Trump was aware of the reports about Perez, and “he believes it’s deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace.” Leavitt said Perez was placed on unpaid administrative leave, and that someone else will operate the teleprompter Thursday night for Trump’s address to the nation on election integrity.
This is the first known instance of a White House employee alleged to be involved in an insider trading scheme on prediction markets, which have exploded in popularity this year.
Earlier this year, the White House warned its staff against insider trading on prediction markets. The March 24 memo told employees that “the misuse of nonpublic information by government employees for financial benefit is a very serious offense and will not be tolerated.”
The Trump-era CFTC has championed prediction markets. But CFTC chair Mike Selig, a Trump appointee, has pledged to crack down on insider trading, including if it came from the White House.
Perez is Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator who has traveled and worked with him for a decade. He is one of the handful of aides the president trusts with his remarks and is often the last person to see Trump’s speeches before he delivers them. Given how often the president makes last minute edits to public remarks, he works extremely closely with Perez and has previously argued that he is the only person who can operate his prompter.
Perez is among the highest-paid members of White House staff. According to a report submitted to Congress, Perez’s 2026 salary is $175,000. His official title is “deputy assistant to the president and technical advisor.”
Trump praised Perez during an event in Reno on the 2024 campaign trail, saying, “I have a guy, Gabe. He’s excellent. I’ve had some real bad ones, but I have Gabe.”
CNN has a partnership with Kalshi and uses its data to cover major events, but CNN editorial employees aren’t allowed to trade on prediction markets.
“The White House has strict ethics guidelines that we expect all staffers and officials to follow,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told ABC News, which first reported the story. Ingle added, “The staffer in question is fully cooperating with the CFTC.”
Kaitlan Collins, Betsy Klein, and Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.
The-CNN-Wire
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