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Crypto.com's Nadex and Novig sue Missouri over sports event contracts

Nadex and Ludlow Exchange (Novig) filed federal suits against Missouri AG Hanaway, arguing CFTC exclusive jurisdiction preempts state sports-wagering enforcement.

by 4 min read
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Nadex — the CFTC-registered North American Derivatives Exchange operated by Crypto.com — and Ludlow Exchange LLC, which runs the Novig platform, filed separate federal lawsuits against Missouri on Friday, October 16, challenging Attorney General Catherine Hanaway's September cease-and-desist letters over sports event contracts, The Block reported. Nadex filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri (Case No. 4:2026cv00969); Novig filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. Kalshi, Polymarket, Robinhood and Underdog — the other four recipients of Hanaway's letters — have not sued in Missouri, per court records.

What happened

Hanaway sent cease-and-desist letters on September 16 and 17, 2026 to six prediction-market operators: Kalshi, Polymarket, Crypto.com, Novig, Underdog and Robinhood. Each had 30 days to stop offering sports event contracts to Missourians or obtain a Missouri Gaming Commission license and pay the state's 10% wagering tax. Hanaway's position, stated on X: "Companies cannot repackage sports bets as 'event contracts' to evade Missouri law." Her letter to Crypto.com additionally flagged that the platform admits users as young as 18, while Missouri's minimum sports-betting age is 21.

The 30-day window from mid-September expired around mid-October. Crypto Briefing also reports the lawsuits, filed as the deadlines ran out.

Both suits ride the same preemption claim: the Commodity Exchange Act gives the CFTC exclusive jurisdiction over event contracts listed on a CFTC-registered exchange, and that federal authority preempts state gambling law.

  • Nadex (Crypto.com): Seeks a declaratory judgment and a permanent injunction barring Missouri from enforcing its sports-wagering statute against the exchange's event contracts. The complaint notes Hanaway "incorrectly addressed" her letter to Foris DAX, Inc. rather than Nadex, and states that a Missouri sports-betting license is unavailable — both of the state's direct mobile licenses have been awarded.
  • Novig (Ludlow Exchange): Seeks a preliminary and permanent injunction. The preliminary request is tied to preserving the status quo while the Eighth Circuit hears a related Kalshi appeal from Iowa.

Circuit split in the background

Federal appellate courts have divided on the same preemption question in parallel Kalshi litigation:

  • 6th and 9th Circuits: Ruled against Kalshi.
  • 3rd Circuit: Sided with Kalshi.
  • 8th Circuit: Hearing the Iowa appeal — the one Novig is explicitly waiting on.

A split at this depth is the pattern that pushes the issue toward the Supreme Court. Any ruling by the Eighth Circuit on the Iowa case will directly bear on both Missouri actions.

Who did not sue

  • Kalshi: The AG's office described "ongoing discussions" with it, per Spectrum News reporting from early October. No Missouri suit as of Sunday, October 18.
  • Polymarket, Robinhood: No Missouri filings.
  • Underdog: Did not sue in Missouri but sued Connecticut in September over a similar crackdown.
  • PrizePicks: Not among the six letter recipients, but suspended its Missouri sports prediction product in early October.

What to watch

  1. Eighth Circuit on Kalshi/Iowa. The ruling will set the operative preemption standard in the circuit covering Missouri. Novig's preliminary-injunction request is pegged to it.
  2. Whether Missouri moves to consolidate. With two Missouri federal districts carrying parallel preemption cases, the state or the exchanges may seek consolidation or multidistrict coordination.
  3. Kalshi's posture. The firm has been the loudest preemption litigant in other states but, per the article, remains in talks with Hanaway. A late filing or a settlement would change the Missouri posture materially.
  4. Any filings by Polymarket or Robinhood. Both received letters and the compliance window has lapsed; silence means either quiet withdrawal from Missouri or a filing pending.

Context

This is now the second named federal challenge Crypto.com has launched this quarter against a state crackdown on prediction-market event contracts, and the fifth operator-driven preemption suit broadly across the Kalshi, Underdog and now Nadex/Novig docket. The pattern — AG letters, 30-day windows, lawsuits timed to the deadline — is calcifying into the standard playbook on both sides. Missouri is the first state since Iowa to draw filings in two federal districts on the same cease-and-desist wave.

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