SEC pauses event-contract ETFs; CFTC, NHL sign integrity pact

The Securities and Exchange Commission has paused consideration of roughly two dozen event‑contract exchange‑traded fund filings after fund sponsors agreed to delay their proposals while the agency seeks public comment. The filings, submitted since February, come from firms including Roundhill Investments, GraniteShares and Bitwise’s PredictionShares brand.

The proposed ETFs would package binary bets on elections, recessions and sports outcomes into brokerage‑traded funds, making prediction‑market positions available on major exchanges. SEC Chair Paul Atkins said agency staff will solicit public input on how to respond to recent market changes and framed the pause as a procedural step rather than a rejection. “Exchange‑traded funds have been-and remain-a major driver of innovation in the securities markets,” Atkins added, noting that ETF assets have tripled since 2019.

Separately, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Hockey League to formalize information sharing and coordinated monitoring of hockey‑related event contracts. The agreement names officials from both organizations to communicate regularly, share data confidentially and work on integrity issues.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the pact will strengthen the league’s integrity monitoring and improve its ability to identify and address potential risks. CFTC Chair Mike Selig described the MOU as a step to improve data sharing between the commission and professional sports leagues and to protect market participants in prediction markets.

The NHL already supplies official game settlement feeds to licensed platforms that run hockey contracts, giving exchanges direct access to game outcomes. The CFTC has pursued similar agreements before; the commission signed a comparable memorandum with Major League Baseball in March.

Regulators have moved in parallel on prediction markets. The SEC and CFTC signed a coordination memorandum in March 2026 that covered product definitions and emerging technology related to prediction products. Open interest in prediction markets reached about $1.2 billion in weekly volume earlier this year.

Retail access to event‑contract ETFs now depends on the results of the SEC’s public comment process and any guidance that follows. Fund sponsors and exchanges will monitor that process for clarity on whether and how those ETFs can be listed and sold to ordinary brokerage customers.