Rush Street Interactive is giving a stronger signal that it wants in on prediction markets, with new information tied to the company’s Commodities Futures Trading Commission application emerging after its earlier filing for a designated contract market license.
The development builds on an earlier report from Susquehanna that linked the BetRivers parent to a prediction markets application, and it comes as the company appears to be moving from monitoring the space to preparing for a more formal entry.
RSI applied for both a DCM license and derivative clearing organization registration with the CFTC.
The company declined to comment when reached earlier this month by LSR.
New filing signals concrete push
RSI filed for a DCM license, the regulatory approval needed to operate as a designated contract market for prediction markets in the United States. That would put the company in the same broad regulatory lane as Kalshi, which already operates under CFTC oversight.
The DCM filing could pave the way for RSI to eventually launch a prediction markets product, though the company still needs regulatory approval and has not announced a specific product timeline.
The DCP application allows a centralized clearinghouse to settle transactions for futures contracts, options on futures and no-security swap.
Earlier caution from management
The move is notable because RSI management had previously played down the urgency of entering prediction markets. In January, CEO Richard Schwartz said predictions was “not an area of high priority for us,” even while acknowledging it was monitoring how competitors and regulators were responding.
That stance was part of a broader narrative that RSI was focused on online casino expansion rather than betting on the prediction markets frontier.
The shift from caution to a formal DCM application suggests the company may have recalibrated its view on the opportunity, or at least decided it wants the option to move quickly if the market develops.
Why it matters for the industry
RSI would become the latest traditional gambling company to pursue CFTC-regulated contract market status, following a wave of sportsbook and gaming operators that are positioning for possible expansion in event contracts.
Three U.S. sportsbooks, DraftKings, Fanatics and FanDuel, as do daily fantasy brands PrizePicks and Underdog.
The company is already the parent of BetRivers, an online casino-first sports betting operator with a presence in multiple U.S. states, which gives it an existing bettor base and infrastructure if it decides to lean into prediction markets.
For the broader industry, RSI’s move matters because it suggests prediction markets are increasingly looking less like a niche experiment and more like a competitive battleground for major gaming brands.
Prediction markets landscape shifting?
RSI was linked to a prediction markets application after the company had spent months publicly signaling caution while continuing to watch the space.
The DCM filing lands against the backdrop of a CFTC rulemaking process that is still developing, meaning any operator entering now is doing so while the regulatory picture remains fluid. The CFTC is currently in an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking phase, asking for comment on issues like margin trading, insider information rules, and what types of event contracts should be prohibited as contrary to the public interest.
RSI has moved from monitoring to filing, signaling it wants the option to launch prediction markets if the regulatory environment and market conditions align.
