TLDR
- Laila Mintas, former PlayUp US CEO, filed for CFTC approval to launch 365Prediction, a regulated prediction market exchange
- The exchange would operate as a designated contract market, clearing trades through Next Gen Clearing, LLC
- Mintas argues prediction markets are exchange-traded products, not gambling, and should stay under federal oversight
- 365Prediction has partnered with FiscalNote for expansion into political prediction markets
- The company licensed Eventus surveillance technology to monitor trading and detect market abuse
Laila Mintas, former CEO of PlayUp US, has filed an application with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to launch a federally regulated prediction market exchange called 365Prediction.
The startup was founded in February 2026. It is seeking to operate as a designated contract market under CFTC oversight.
How the Exchange Would Work
The platform would run as a fully collateralized exchange. Trades would clear through an affiliated clearinghouse called Next Gen Clearing, LLC.
365Prediction has also licensed surveillance technology from Eventus to monitor trading activity and flag potential market abuse.
The company’s board includes Mintas, sports betting executive Leo Gaspar, Olympic gold medalist and former Sports Innovation Lab CEO Angela Ruggiero, and several other directors.
Mintas has been a public advocate for prediction markets for some time. In a 2026 industry feature, she predicted that prediction markets would eventually surpass traditional sports betting.
She submitted a formal public comment to the CFTC’s prediction market rulemaking process. In it, she argued that sports-event contracts belong under federal regulation, not state gaming laws.
Her position is that prediction markets are fundamentally different from traditional sports betting. Participants trade contracts with each other rather than betting against a bookmaker.
“Sports event contracts are not betting,” Mintas said at the NEXT Summit New York. “You trade them like a stock exchange.”
Mintas’ Background in the Industry
Mintas has spent over two decades in sports betting, gaming, and sports data. She has held senior roles at Sportradar, FIFA, CONCACAF, PlayEngine, and Bet.Works.
Bet.Works was acquired by Bally’s in 2020. She later became CEO of PlayUp US during its push into the American sports betting market.
Her time at PlayUp drew attention after a planned sale to crypto exchange FTX collapsed, leading to legal action between Mintas and the company.
She said her team launched 365Prediction because they saw prediction markets as a growth opportunity and felt existing products needed improvement.
“Sitting back on the sidelines and watching the market was not an option for us,” Mintas said.
365Prediction has also partnered with FiscalNote as part of that company’s move into political prediction markets.
Mintas said current prediction market products are “far away from being perfect” and that 365Prediction plans to stand out through technology and product development.
The CFTC has not yet responded to the application. If approved, 365Prediction would join a growing list of federally regulated exchanges targeting the prediction market space.
