White House teleprompter operator investigated for betting on Trump speech words

A White House teleprompter operator is under investigation for allegedly exploiting his position to profit from President Donald Trump's speeches. Gabriel Perez, who has operated teleprompters at the White House since 2016, is accused of using inside knowledge to place bets on specific words Trump would utter during major addresses, including the State of the Union.

Perez reportedly made nearly $100,000 by betting on prediction markets, specifically on contracts that predicted whether a speaker would use common terms like country names, economic words, or campaign slogans. The platform where these bets were placed, Kalshi, flagged the unusual activity to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which regulates such markets.

Kalshi froze Perez's account, preventing him from withdrawing over $90,000 in alleged profits. The company's head of enforcement stated they handed evidence to regulators. While federal prosecutors in Manhattan declined to pursue a criminal case, the CFTC has not confirmed or denied an ongoing probe. The White House confirmed President Trump is aware of the situation, and Perez has been placed on unpaid leave, with his employment at the White House terminated. Sources indicate Perez has been cooperative with the CFTC investigation.

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The words of political leaders like Presidents and Fed chairs cause billions of dollars of movement in FX markets, oil futures, [and] the stock market.