MoFo's Financial Markets & Innovation

Ripple Receives Final OCC Approval for National Trust Bank

On October 26, Ripple received final, unconditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish the Ripple National Trust Bank. The application, submitted on July 2, 2025, was conditionally approved on December 12, 2025. Ripple plans to use the approval to offer fiduciary digital asset custody services at the federal level.

Prediction Market Challenges Louisiana Enforcement Threats Against Sports Contracts

On October 23, a leading prediction markets provider filed a preemptive lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana challenging threatened state enforcement against its event contracts. The complaint cites a December 2025 advisory to licensed sportsbooks in which the Gaming Control Board finds that sports prediction market activities are sports gambling under Louisiana law and argues that state licensing requirements, new state enforcement tools, and threatened bars infringe on the CFTC’s exclusive jurisdiction. The prediction market seeks a temporary restraining order and preliminary and permanent injunctions, alleging that the threatened enforcement presents “a threat of irreparable harm” to its commercial interests and users.

CFTC and NBA Sign Prediction Market Memorandum of Understanding

On October 26, the CFTC and NBA announced a memorandum of understanding (MOU) intended to “protect the integrity of professional basketball in prediction markets.” The MOU provides for regular communication and information sharing on prediction market matters and the maintenance of fair and transparent markets. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig said the agreement continues the Commission’s commitment to increasing data sharing with professional sports leagues. The NBA joins other major sports leagues in entering such arrangements with the Commission.

CFTC Sues Utah to Block State Prediction Market Enforcement

On October 26, the CFTC filed a complaint to block Utah’s state-law efforts to shut down CFTC-registered contract markets. The action follows Utah’s enforcement actions in state court against CFTC-regulated businesses. The CFTC finds that Utah’s restrictions obstruct Congress’s decision to preempt state law governing those markets. The complaint requests a judgment that Utah laws violate the Supremacy Clause and an injunction prohibiting Utah from investigating CFTC-regulated entities or transactions on such entities.

CFTC Approves Listing of Key Performance Indicator Contract

On October 27, CFTC Chairman Michael Selig announced that the approval of a designated contract market (DCM) to list a swap settling on a key performance indicator (KPI). The cash-settled, binary-outcome contract is structured as a swap under the Commodity Exchange Act, traded on a DCM, and cleared through a registered derivatives clearing organization. Selig emphasized that the approval does not extend to similar contracts or address SEC jurisdiction over contracts based on the same KPIs structured to fall within its authority.