# White House insider trading settlement > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/white-house-insider-trading-settlement > Updated: 2026-08-31T06:53:10.000Z. Sources: 35. Developments: 2. Gabriel Perez, a former White House teleprompter operator, has reached a settlement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) following an investigation into insider trading on prediction markets. Between December 2025 and February 2026, Perez used his access to President Donald Trump’s prepared remarks to trade ‘mention market’ contracts on the Kalshi platform. These contracts involve wagering on whether specific words or phrases appear in presidential speeches. The CFTC determined that Perez misappropriated non-public information, breaching his duty of trust to the U.S. government. As part of the settlement, Perez will pay a total of $172,539, consisting of $107,539 in surrendered profits and a $65,000 civil penalty. He is also subject to a three-year trading ban. The CFTC noted that the penalty was reduced due to Perez’s “exemplary cooperation” and credited the Kalshi platform for assisting in the investigation. This case is identified as the first known instance of a White House employee participating in an insider trading scheme involving prediction markets. ## Timeline ### 2026-08-31: CFTC fines former White House operator for prediction market insider trading A former White House teleprompter operator will pay $172,539 to the CFTC for using advance access to presidential speeches to trade prediction market contracts for profit. 6 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/cftc-fines-former-white-house-operator-for-prediction-market-insider-trading ### 2026-08-28: Gabriel Perez to pay $172K for insider trading on Trump speech bets Former White House teleprompter operator Gabriel Perez will pay over $172,000 in fines and forfeit profits to settle CFTC charges of using insider knowledge of presidential speeches to bet on prediction markets 30 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/gabriel-perez-ordered-to-pay-172k-for-insider-trading-on-trump-speech-predictions --- Cite as: White House insider trading settlement. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/white-house-insider-trading-settlement