Former White House Aide Fined for Insider Trading on Trump Speeches

Gabriel Perez, a former White House teleprompter operator, has agreed to pay a $65,000 fine and forfeit over $107,000 in profits to settle an insider trading case brought by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The CFTC determined that Perez used nonpublic information and misappropriated material to place 49 trades on the prediction market Kalshi, winning 39 of them. These trades focused on mention markets, where users bet on specific words or phrases a public figure will use during an event. The bets involved several occasions, including the State of the Union address, the National Prayer Breakfast, and various rallies.

As a longtime aide who worked with Donald Trump for a decade, Perez was often one of the last people to see the president's remarks before they were delivered. The CFTC stated that Perez breached his duty of trust and confidentiality to the U.S. government. However, the agency provided a substantial discount on the fine due to his exemplary cooperation with the probe. In addition to the financial penalties, Perez received a three year trading ban from Kalshi. The prediction company stated that it caught the prohibited activity and reported it to federal authorities.

Reports on the severity of the penalty vary by political perspective. A center left source highlighted criticism from a former CFTC commissioner who argued the small fine was a missed opportunity to deter insider trading at the highest level of government. A center right source focused on the factual details of the settlement and the specific nature of the mention market contracts. The White House previously stated that President Trump considered the actions a disgrace.