Giannis Antetokounmpo Joins Kalshi as Shareholder, Drawing Scrutiny

Giannis Antetokounmpo announced on Feb. 6, 2026, that he has joined prediction market Kalshi as a shareholder and will assist with marketing and live events, and Kalshi said he is barred from trading on NBA-related markets.

The move matters because the NBA's recent collective bargaining agreement allows players to advertise and hold ownership stakes of up to 1% in sports-betting companies, and Antetokounmpo has been sidelined since suffering a right calf strain on Jan. 23, 2026 amid trade speculation.

Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour praised Antetokounmpo "as the type of long-term partner we want" in a company release, while Antetokounmpo wrote "The internet is full of opinions..." in a social media post and Reddit users called the deal a "conflict of interest" and "cancerous".

Prediction markets trade event contracts priced between $0 and $1 to reflect perceived probabilities, and an anonymous trader's more than $400,000 gain on rival platform Polymarket previously raised suspicions of insider trading, according to platform transaction records.

Kalshi said its terms of service ban insider trading and company officials said they will enforce the prohibition, and the NBA did not immediately respond to requests for comment as analysts said the partnership could prompt league or regulatory review.